


Whatever Happened to Baby William?

by DaynaFoxe



Category: The X-Files
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-12-19
Updated: 2015-03-16
Packaged: 2017-11-21 15:17:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 36,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/599242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaynaFoxe/pseuds/DaynaFoxe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Whatever became of William Scully after he was adopted by the Van De Kamps? Have the Aliens truly given up on trying to use him in their colonization plans? What would happen if he were living nearby Mulder and Scully, and Scully found out? <br/>*Please keep in mind this is the rough draft of the story, revisions and filling out may be made after the entire story is completed. Thank you :)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

       

"Matt, Bridget; wait for me!" Dana Scully called to her niece and nephew. Matt Scully, ten years old, looked a lot like his Father, Bill Scully. Tall, strong and over-bearing, it was likely he'd follow in his Father and Grandfather’s footsteps and join the Navy. He was already expressing interest. Five year old Bridget Scully, the daughter of Dana's younger brother Charlie, looked like Dana. She had red hair, though a pale shade of strawberry blonde and not the ginger shade Dana and Charlie had when they were young.

            "Aw, come on, Aunt Dana! The park's right there! You can see it from here!" Matt whined as he and Bridget came to a tentative stop. Matt had brown eyes and crew cut dark red hair. He looked like a bully, and like his Father he could be, but mostly he was a sweet-tempered boy.

            "Please, Aunt Dana?" Bridget added, casting her wide blue eyes up at her Aunt. "It's not that far, really!"

            Dana sighed. She _could_ see the top of the monkey bars and Jungle Gym from where she was and it was only going to get closer. "Alright, alright." she called to her niece and nephew, who exchanged grins and took off. "But no farther than the monkey bars!" Dana called, smiling and shaking her head. She'd been taking Matt and Bridget to the park every Saturday for the last few months. It was good to get away from the house and get out, and not have to work. She always asked Mulder to go, but he almost always said no. He was distant lately, moody. She knew what his problem was; he felt like he had no purpose. Though he cared about her a great deal, he wanted more out of life than a relationship. His work on the X-Files had been important, had helped people. He was languishing now with nothing to do.

            Dana walked along the dirt path, brooding, and didn't notice the red ball bounce by her. A second later a small boy slammed into her, knocking her back a step and knocking himself on his back. The kid sat up and Dana stared. The mouth and nose were her own, the same she'd seen in the mirror every day of her life. There was no mistaking them. But the eyes, his eyes were what made her completely stop. So many times, over so many years, she had looked into those deep, intense eyes, shining with intelligence. Beautiful hazel eyes that seemed to contain the secrets of the universe. Mulder's eyes. They stared back at her with the same intensity she herself stared with.

            "Billy! Billy, are you alright?" A woman calling broke the connection between Dana and the little boy. "Billy, what happened?" a dark haired woman in her early forties asked as she hurried over to them. Her face was lined with worry as she helped the boy up.

            Dana felt like something was squeezing her heart inside of her chest. It felt like it was swelling and being crushed at the same time. _Billy? WILLIAM?_ shethought, refusing to believe it, that William could have been so close all along, that he could be in front of her now. Her son. The little boy she gave away to keep safe. Her William.

            The dark-haired woman, clearly the boy's Mother, knelt down. "Billy? What happened?" she asked, her voice becoming hard from worry and fear. "Billy, what's wrong?"

            Billy looked at Dana, seeming to be mesmerized. Then he finally looked at the dark-haired woman. "My ball. It got away from me, so I had to run after it, so I wouldn't lose it. I didn't see the lady, and I ran into her." Billy looked back at Dana and gave her a sheepish smile that broke her heart into a thousand pieces and made it soar above the clouds. It was Mulder's smile. "Sorry lady."

            "It's alright, Billy." Dana whispered, barely able to get the name out.

            The dark-haired woman sighed in relief and laughed nervously. "Oh, Billy, you scared me half to death!" she said, standing up and smiling at him. "Disappearing like that, and then I see you on the ground and you won't answer me..." She gave the little boy a quick hug. "Hurry up, go and get your ball, Silly-Billy. And answer me next time, alright?"

            Billy grinned at her. "OK, Mom, I promise." he said and jogged off to get the red plastic ball from the bushes where it landed.

            The woman looked at Dana and smiled. "Sorry about that. He's only six even though he looks so much older, and full of energy. My name is Gloria." she said, extending her hand to Dana.

            Dana felt herself smile involuntarily and take Gloria's hand. Her brain felt frozen, and she was moving on autopilot. "Dana. It's nice to meet you." The two women shook hands as Billy returned with the ball. The three of them continued towards the park, Dana trying to find her way through the maze that had suddenly sprung up in her mind. _William? Could he really possibly be_ my _William?_ she thought to herself. "What?" she asked, looking up as Gloria stopped walking.

            "I asked if you were here with your children." Gloria replied, smiling. "I asked three times, you must have really been out there."

            Dana smiled awkwardly. "I'm sorry, I guess I was." She cleared her throat. "No, I uh, I don't have any children." _Li-er!_ Dana thought to herself, brushing the thought away quickly. "I'm here with my niece and nephew. We come here every Saturday." she explained.

            "Oh, that's so nice of you! We just moved here from Wyoming, it's our first time at this park. My husband owned a farm, but we just couldn't make it anymore, with the way the country's been going. We moved here when he took a job at the Washington D.C. Zoo." Gloria explained as Billy ran ahead and jumped up on the Jungle Gym. She and Dana walked to a bench and sat down. "He works with the farm animals in the petting area."

            "Did you get lost on the way, Aunt Dana?" Matt called, waving from the top of the Monkey Bars. Bridget was playing in the sand box nearby.

            Dana smiled and waved at Matt, rolling her eyes at him. Just like her brother Bill... She turned her attention back to Gloria. "Wyoming, you said? That's a pretty big change, from there to here. How's Billy coping?" Dana asked, hoping she didn't sound intrusive. She had to figure out if he was her son, if he was her William.

            Gloria just smiled at her. She was a kind and open person who appreciated the concern for her son. "Dan, that's my husband, and I were worried about that at first. We sat him down and explained to him why we were moving, and where to. He was nervous at first, but there wasn't anyone in Wyoming for him to play with anyway, no one nearby, just a few friends from school. There's so much more to do here. He seems much happier."

            Dana smiled and nodded in reply. She watched the little boy play. Matt struck up a game of tag with Billy and a little girl who seemed like a tomboy.   _He could be playing with his cousin! They could be cousins, and not even realize it..._ Dana tore her eyes away from Billy to look at Gloria. She squinted in the bright sun light. "That's good. At least he's adjusting well. My Father was in the Navy when I was child, and we moved often. None of us really enjoyed it except my brother Bill, but my brother Charlie always had a terrible time with moving. It can be rough."

            "Yes, it can." Gloria replied in agreement. "I've never cared for it much myself. But Billy has always been adaptive, ever since he was small." Gloria paused and her eyes seemed to darken for a moment. "I was never too worried, to be honest. I just knew he'd be fine. If I really thought he'd have trouble, we wouldn't have moved. It took Dan and I so long to get him, we do whatever we can to make him happy. Without spoiling him too much." she added as an afterthought, smiling a bit embarrassedly at Dana. "But you can't avoid spoiling them completely, can you?"

            Dana's heart pounded in her chest. Here, here was a chance to find out if Billy was Gloria's biological son! If he was, she knew that already she would be disappointed. And if he wasn't... Well, it didn't mean he was her son; it didn't even make it likely. But the possibility was there still, and that was what mattered to her at the moment. "No, I've heard you can't. My husband and I have had a lot of trouble conceiving too. We're starting to consider adoption now." This wasn't exactly true. She and Mulder were not married, and they were not thinking of adopting. But, she had had difficulty trying to conceive, at least.

            Gloria took the bait easily. Her eyes lit up when Dana mentioned adoption. Nodding enthusiastically, she glanced up to make sure Billy wasn't within earshot before leaning closer to Dana. "Adoption is a wonderful option; if you really want a child you should go for it!" She looked around for Billy again before continuing. "My husband and I weren’t able to have children. We tried for years, we went to counseling, to doctors, we took so many prescriptions, and we never even conceived once. Billy is adopted; we adopted him when he was 8 months old. We're planning on telling him when he's older, but for now we feel it's better he doesn't know. But it's the greatest thing we've ever done; the most rewarding experience in the world is having a child." Gloria gushed.

            Dana smiled painfully. "Yes, I've heard that, and I have to agree with it. I think it would be very rewarding. The most wonderful thing in the world."

            Gloria noticed the forced, pained smile. "I'm so sorry. I guess that really wasn't very thoughtful of me, was it." Gloria said quietly, touching Dana's arm lightly. "I understand how hard it is, believe me I do. It took 15 years before my husband and I considered adoption. But in the end, I really wish we would have done it sooner. We adore Billy, there's no way we could love him more if he was our biological child. Blood doesn't really mean so much."

            Dana nodded, hating herself suddenly for the game she would play with this woman, just to get close enough to find out if Billy was the son she'd given away, and then if it was him, just to see him grow up so she could know absolutely that he was safe and happy. The woman obviously loved him, and he her. Why jeopardize that? But she already knew she would. "You're absolutely right. I just wish it could be different." Dana said simply, appearing to close herself up to this woman who was really a complete stranger.

            Gloria noticed and dropped her hand from Dana's shoulder. "I know. I know how it was with Dan and I, at least. If you have any questions or want to talk, I would be happy to help."

            Dana latched onto the offer quickly. "Thank you. That's very kind of you, really it is." Dana gave Gloria a genuine smile. "My husband and I may very well take you up on that offer." Dana glanced down at her watch. She was surprised to see how long she and Gloria had been talking. "I should be going now, actually." she told Gloria, standing up and beckoning for Matt and Bridget. "My brother is having a dinner party tonight and my niece has to get ready.

            Gloria stood up and shook her hand again. "It really was very nice to meet you. You said you come here every Saturday, didn't you?"

            Dana nodded. "Yes. Usually between 1 and 2, right after lunch. We were a little late today."

            Gloria smiled. "Good. Billy and I will see you next Saturday than. He seems to get along very well with your nephew, he'll be happy to see him again."

            Dana agreed and said good-bye. Bridget and Matt talked the whole ride back to Bill's house, but Dana rode mostly in silence, thinking, trying to get used to the idea. What would Mulder say when he found out their son might be living in the same zip code?


	2. Chapter 2

It was dusk when Dana pulled into the driveway of the small unassuming house she shared with her ex-FBI partner and boyfriend Fox Mulder. Like always, she turned the car off and just sat there, looking at the house. It was too dark and empty-looking to be a home. All of the windows were dark, but Dana knew Mulder was in there, in his office at the back of the house, clipping articles from ill-reputed magazines or surfing the internet for sites no one else would be interested in except as a joke.

            Steeling herself, Dana got out of the car and unlocked the front door of their house. The dining room she walked into was clean, but dark. They never ate there, so the table was little more than a catch-all. She sat her keys down on the edge of the table and draped her jacket over a chair before walking back towards Mulder's Office. She could hear the keys of the keyboard clacking away, but after more than a decade in the FBI, she couldn't shake the habit of going down the hallway slowly, approaching carefully. "Mulder?" she said quietly, stepping into the doorway.

            The chair swiveled quickly so the man sitting in it could face her. Though he was in his 40's now, a boyish glow still pervaded his looks. His brown hair framed a strong face; his hazel eyes were intelligent and playful. He knew how to use those eyes to his advantage, she knew. Right now a rough grizzle covered the lower part of his face, remnants from not shaving for a few days, and his eyes were brighter than they'd been in awhile.

            "Scully! You're home, great! I've been waiting for you, you have to see this, come here, look!" he said, swiveling the chair back around and gesturing to the computer screen.

            Scully could tell as soon she glanced at the screen that he was on the web site he had set up as a memorial to his fallen friends of The Lone Gunmen; Richard Langley, Melvin Frohike, and John Fitzgerald Byers. He named it 'The Truth is Out There' and dedicated it to uncovering Government Conspiracies and investigating Paranormal Phenomena. It was also Mulder's only current way of continuing his work on the X-Files, and took up roughly 95% of his time. "What did you find now, Mulder?" she asked, leaning over his shoulder to look more closely at the screen, scratching his back lightly with her nails as she did so.

            "Read it, and look at these pictures! They're some of the best I've ever seen!" Mulder told her excitedly, scrolling through the story he'd just finished posting, eager to get down to the pictures at the bottom.

            "Mulder..." Dana began, but he cut her off quickly. "Don't complain yet! You have to read it first!" he insisted, giving her the kicked-puppy eyes he knew she couldn't refuse. Sighing, she humored him, reading through the story quickly. In short, there had been over 3,000 reported UFO sightings off the coast of Sete, France in a three day period the previous week. It was all typical, with strange lights in the sky, lost time being reported, high radiation levels, dead fish. She'd heard it all many times before. The pictures were good; several brilliant lights framed what appeared to be a large circular disk rising out of the ocean. Dana had only ever seen maybe three others of similar quality, but she could come up with several explanations for it off-hand. She straightened up when she finished reading.

            "So, what do you think, Scully?" Mulder asked, sounding breathless from excitement. "The source I got this from is a high ranking member of the French Government. It's all being kept hush-hush. This could be the real deal, Scully! And if not, than what did several thousand French Citizens and Tourists see last week? Some kind of new weapon or aircraft being tested by the French?"

            Dana nodded, settling into a reading chair in the corner. "Maybe. Or something our government is testing, more likely. The pictures _are_ very good, I'll give you that, but they could have easily been faked in numerous ways, especially with the technological advancements of today."

            "Joy-kill." Mulder muttered, giving her a hurt and disappointed pout.

            Dana looked directly at him, one eyebrow raised. "Either way, Mulder, why does it matter?" she asked. "We don't study unexplained phenomena anymore, remember? There hasn't even been an X-Files Department in the FBI in years so far as we know. It's a curiosity now, nothing more."

            Mulder's excitement was back. He leaned forward, smiling. "I want us to go to France." he told her, continuing quickly before she could protest. "My Source who leaked me this story can get us diplomatic immunity, and he can get us into classified areas! Come on, Scully, it'll be like old times, just one more adventure for the record!" he implored.

            Dana stared at him, mouth hanging open. "Mulder, absolutely not! I can't go to France! I actually have responsibilities here, patients who are depending on me, my niece and nephew... Mulder, I can't believe you would even suggest this!" she cried, angry and somewhat hurt.

            "Come on, Dana." he said softly, using her first name to show how serious he was about going. "There are other doctors who can take over while we are gone. It's not like it's forever." he said. "Think of it as, a vacation." A boyish smile crept over his face. "We could use one, you know."

            She was furious, and his charms weren't working on her. "A vacation? No, Mulder, it's nothing like a vacation. It's dangerous, and I really can't believe you would consider just leaving our lives here to go on a wild goose chase, even for a split second! We have friends here, family. We aren't FBI agents anymore, we, we can't just pack a bag and run off!"

            Mulder looked at her, openly hurt now. "Scully, this could really be a chance to prove something here. Don't you understand? How many years did we work together to look for the truth? This could be it." He reached out and caught hold of her arm gently as she tried to walk out of the room. "Scully, I need you. I can't do this on my own." He shook his head slightly.

            Dana pulled her arm away from him. "Mulder, if you want to go chase little green men half way across the world, fine. Go do it. But I'm not coming. Not to France, not anywhere. If you're going, you're going alone. Have a nice trip." With that, she stormed into the bedroom they shared and slammed the door behind her, leaving Mulder in stunned silence.

            Dana stood inside the door, hands balled into fists. How could he even entertain the idea of leaving the country to go to France to look for UFOs? How for even a moment? How _could_ he? Still furious, she changed into a pair of pajamas and slid into bed. It was still early, but she didn't care. She didn't want to see him again until the next day, probably after work when she'd be too tired to pay attention to his nonsense. It wasn't until she turned off the light and was half asleep that she realized she'd never told him about William.

            It was some time later that Mulder slipped into the dark bedroom. The moonlight from the bedroom window spilled across the room, illuminating her face, and he paused to watch her. Always so serious when she was awake, in sleep she was relaxed, and so innocent looking that she appeared girlish to him. He closed the door quietly and tiptoed across the room. He sat down on the edge of the bed lightly and brushed her auburn hair out of her face. Biting his lower lip slightly, he leaned down to whisper in her ear. "I'm sorry, Dana. I don’t know what I was thinking. France was a bad idea." He kissed the side of her face gently and slid into the bed beside her.

            "Mulder?" Dana said into the silence a few moments later. "Mulder, are you still awake? I have something to tell you." she said, squirming around to face him.

            "Hm?" he mumbled, opening one eye. "Did I wake you up? I'm sorry." he said, sitting up with her.

            She smiled at him softly. "Scratchy beard." she said, reaching over and brushing the side of his face with her finger tips. "But it's alright. I have to tell you something."

            He smiled back at her. "What is it? Not still mad at me?"

            She ignored his question. "At the park today, I ran into this little boy with his Mother." Dana kept her eyes down. The overwhelming guilt she felt about giving their son away was almost unbearable. Mulder had never _shown_ her any resentment over it, no matter how much it hurt him, but she didn't know how he couldn't _feel_ the resentment. She was afraid to look at him when she spoke about William, afraid to see what he hid so well revealed in his eyes. "He ran into me, and when I looked at him... My God, Mulder, he had my nose, my mouth! He had your eyes, the exact same eyes, and your smile. Mulder, he..." she whispered, suddenly fighting tears.

            Mulder put his arms around her, holding her head against his shoulder. "William." he said, and she nodded against him. "Dana, it couldn't be. The adoption services, they wouldn't have placed him so close." he told her soothingly, smoothing her hair, trying to comfort her.

            Dana pulled back from him and shook her head. "They didn't place him here. His Mother, Gloria, she told me they just moved here from Wyoming. He's adopted, his name is Billy!" she said, as though that proved everything.

            Mulder gazed at her a moment without saying anything. "Think about it. How many little boys are there who are adopted and named Billy? It's a very common name." he told her gently.

            She nodded. "I know that. I'm sure there are a lot of little boys named Billy who are adopted. What I want to know is how many of them have my nose and mouth, and your smile and your eyes." she answered, raising her own eyes to his. "You're the one who always says there is no such thing as a coincidence." To which Mulder didn't have a reply.

            They stared into one another's eyes. Finally Mulder nodded. "Alright. You're right. It, he could be William, Our William. But Dana, what do you want to do? It's not fair to even try to take him back now, and I doubt we could if we wanted to."

            She nodded and swallowed. "I know. I would love to have him back, but I know it isn't fair. And we, _I,_ I gave him up to protect him. I just have to know if that's him. So I can know he's OK, that he's safe, and happy. I couldn't take him from those people; that woman loves him, and he loves her. I know that. I just want to be able to sleep at night knowing that when I gave William up, I did something good for him." she whispered as a tear made its way down her cheek.

            Mulder kissed her forehead and hugged her again. "Dana, whether that little boy is our William or not, you did the best thing you could for our son. You did something great for him. I know it, and when have I ever been wrong?"

            Dana chuckled through her tears and wiped her cheeks. "Thank you, Mulder."

            He smiled at her and slid back down under the covers. "Don't thank me, don't thank me. Get some sleep, you have work in the morning, remember? I'm going to take a little break from the site for awhile to see what I can find out about William and that little boy. We'll find out if he's our William or not, I promise.”


	3. Chapter 3

Dana drove to work in the rain the next morning. It was about a quarter till 7, and the sun was barely up. The rhythmic sound of the windshield wipers almost put her to sleep, and she was thankful for the coffee Mulder had made for her to take with her. Her sleep had been broken, haunted by memories of William during his first 8 months of life, before she'd given him away. His eyes hadn't been hazel than, she remembered. They had been blue, baby blue. She wondered when they had turned hazel, than stopped herself.

            "Get it together, Dana." she muttered to herself. "You don't even know for sure what color his eyes are now. You don't know for sure that you've seen him in the last 5 years!" But she did know. What she hadn't been able to articulate to Mulder the night before was that she just _knew_ that Billy was her son. From the second she saw him she knew. Just like a Mother could tell her own baby's cry from another’s when they sounded identical to anyone else, a Mother just _knew_ her child, no matter how long they were apart.

            "But you _aren't_ his Mother anymore." she argued with herself sternly. "Gloria is his Mother now; she's been his Mother now for much longer than you ever were." And so it went for the entire drive to work. Anyone who saw her that morning would have thought her crazy, animatedly talking to herself. Once at work, however, Dana was finally able to push Billy to the back of her mind. She had patients, innocent children, depending on her for their very survival. Always a professional, none of her peers or patients would guess at her personal turmoil.

* * *

 

            Across town, William John Van De Kamp stood looking in the mirror over his bureau, straightening his tie. He was a tall boy, already becoming muscular and well-built. His red-brown hair was cut in a neat bowl cut that stopped just above his hazel eyes. Not even counting his unusual size and build, Billy Van De Kamp did not look like a normal boy. His face was always serious, much too serious for a child. He laughed and played, yes, but he was serious. It was because Billy _knew_ things. For instance, he had known for as long as he could remember that Gloria and Dan Van De Kamp were not his birth parents. No one had told him this, but he could feel it. Though he appreciated what they did for him, and loved them very much, he was to think of them only as his Keepers. Their use was only to care for him until he could be trained for his true purpose and attachment would only make things more difficult. Just as the woman in the park, Dana, had been his Incubator. No one had told him that, either, and he wasn’t sure what ‘incubator’ meant, but he knew it just the same.

            When Billy had been two years old, a light had come to him in the night. It had not spoken to him exactly, but after the visit he had begun to know things. More than that, but Billy didn’t like to do the other things. The light ‘told’ him they were not bad things, but he felt that they were. The Church his parents took him to would feel that they were wrong, and Billy liked the Church. The knowing, that was something he could not control, or he wouldn’t do that either. He was not afraid of the light and what came with it though. There was something comforting and familiar in it. Billy knew that he held that light inside of him somehow, and that was what let him do the special things.

            Billy looked out the window as a sudden gust of wind drove the rain against it with a pronounced splat. He found himself almost hoping that the light would be there. It had come to him several times since he was two, always bringing with it more knowledge, more powers. He was always stronger after it came, and the appearance of the light always preceded one of his strange growth spurts. But, it had never come in the morning before, only late in the night while his parents slept.

Though his eyes searched hopefully, the only light he saw was the sun beginning to rise. He wanted the light to come. He could feel that something was about to happen, and even with his powers and his knowing, he couldn’t figure out what it was. But whatever it was, he sensed it was important. He wasn’t afraid, the light told him not to be, but he didn’t always trust it completely. He felt it would not hurt him, but his parents were not so favored. And even though it had warned him about becoming attached, he did love them. If it came down to it, he would choose them over the light, and fight the light to keep them safe.

The thought of fighting the light made the little boy shiver. He was not afraid of it, but if he fought it that would change quickly. It did not want to hurt him, but if he went against it the light would not hesitate. If he didn’t obey it when the time came, he knew his parents were as good as dead. He didn’t think it would kill him; it seemed to think he was important for something, but it would make things very unpleasant. If he fought it, if he tried to hurt it, it would hurt him.

            Billy was still staring out the window when three loud raps came on his door. “Bill, time to get up and get dressed!” Dan Van De Kamp called as he opened the door. When he caught sight of Billy he stopped and smiled. “Good morning, buddy. I guess you beat me today. In a hurry?” he asked.

            Billy grinned at his Father broadly. “Yes sir! Today’s Sunday and Miss Wilton said we are going to learn about the Angels today in Sunday School!”

            Dan laughed at his son’s enthusiasm. “Angels, huh? That sounds like fun. Better hurry up and get down stairs before you’re late. Your Mom has eggs and pancakes waiting.” Billy whooped in delight and ran past him. Dan scooped his son up on the way out the door and carried him down the stairs. “And what’s with this ‘yes sir’ stuff? How about ‘yes Daddy’? I’m not a stranger you have to be polite for, right?” he asked, tickling the little boy. Billy giggled in return. Dan kissed his cheek before setting him down on the floor. “Go on and give your Mom a kiss good morning and tell her I’ll be at the table in a minute.”

            “OK Daddy.” Billy answered. He was looking forward to Sunday School today especially. They’d talked a little about the Angels last Sunday, and Billy thought the Angels sounded a lot like the light that came to him. He was dying to hear more. If the light was Angels than everything would be alright. He wouldn’t have to worry about them hurting him or his parents. He could even use his powers, all of them, if they came from the Angels. If they came from the Angels, they were gifts from God, and according to the Church gifts from God should always be used and appreciated.

* * *

 

 Home in his study, the rain having tapered off mid-afternoon, a freshly shaven Mulder was at his computer. His eyes were getting that glow, the one that meant he was on the trail of something big. Someone had gone through an awful lot of trouble to seal and destroy William’s records. He understood that was Scully’s request, and that she had connections, but this was too good of a job. It was his opinion that someone had taken her wishes and used them against her. Someone who wanted it to look like William John Mulder had never existed at all. There were no birth records, no medical records, no nursery school records, not a damn thing. Everyone he called came to a dead end with the search.

Mulder could taste a fear in the back of his throat, one he hadn’t felt in years, not since before he finally found out what had become of his sister Samantha. The only one who could have erased William so completely was the Shadow Syndicate. The only problem with that was they should have all been long dead well before William was even born.

Mulder bit his lower lip, looking at the information he had uncovered, or better put, the lack of it. He had hoped to have more for Dana when she came home. He knew that she was absolutely certain that this little boy was William, even if she wouldn’t come right out and say quite as much. Mulder either wanted to prove she was right, or let her down that she was wrong as early as possible, before it became even harder to do.

Still mulling over his problem, Fox Mulder stared at the name of his son. William John Mulder. He smiled slightly. Dana’s family had not appreciated that last name. Her brother Bill had made an incredible scene over it according to Dana, and from what he knew of the man Mulder wasn’t surprised. He didn’t completely blame him. There was no proof William was his biological son, after all. And he had been gone for most Dana’s pregnancy. But, who had done more for William than he had, besides Dana? Would the wonderful and perfect Bill Scully Junior have disappeared, separated from everyone he loved for months with his own life in danger, to protect William? Mulder knew the answer was no. Bill had actually been rather happy that Dana had given her son up. It was an embarrassment to the family for her to be an unwed single Mother, and better the boy go to a real family than stay with her and grow up to be a delinquent spending his life in prison.

Mulder felt the old anger seep through him like a poison. The perfect holy Billy-Boy had actually said those things to Dana when she had explained what she was doing to her family, and as much of the why as she could. Mulder had not had the privilege of seeing Bill since then, but that was probably a good thing. He wasn’t sure his fists could behave themselves this time, not after what he had said to Dana when she needed him more than any other time. He’d always been a self-righteous and insensitive bastard, but that had taken it way too far.

Mulder was still staring at the name. William John Mulder. What was it he was missing, what was he trying to see? He smiled a little as his eyes lingered on his son’s middle name. That had been his input on the matter. Dana had wanted to name the baby William Fox, but he was not having any of that. He’d had to grow up with Fox as his first name, and he didn’t want to curse an innocent baby with that name in any way. So he had suggested John, after John Doggett. It was his own way of making peace. He had been gone, though unwillingly, for almost all of Scully’s pregnancy. Without John Doggett, from what he heard, William never would have been born. He didn’t doubt Scully’s account of things. She had suggested William Walter at the time, but it hadn’t sounded right to him, as much as the old Skin-Man deserved the honor. William John had been right, he had just known it.

It was then that it clicked. John Doggett. John & Monica! If anyone would be willing to help him and Dana find out what happened to William, they would! They had been more a part of William’s life, directly, than Mulder himself ever was. Starting to smile, feeling a piece of the puzzle click, Mulder began to type on the computer to find the numbers. It had been far too long anyway, out of necessity, since he and Dana had spoken to two people who had saved their and their son’s lives.


	4. Chapter 4

It was after dark when Dana pulled her car into the driveway. She was exhausted. It had been a long day at work, and she found herself wondering how long she would be able to endure the emotional strain that came with her career. Mostly she loved it, but then there were days like today.

Three patients. She had lost three patients today. It was almost unheard of. Yes, she did work with extremely ill children, but they were normally well out of her care by this stage, if things were unfortunate enough to turn out poorly for them. Dana sat in the car, head in her hands. Not just three patients, three children.

Daniel Lawson was the oldest of them, and he was only twelve. She had known he was going when he caught pneumonia, but it happened faster than she had expected. Not even three full days.

Dawn-Marie Keller was three hours shy of her 11th birthday when she coded. That had been unexpected. Her prognosis had given her six months and Dana had still had hope for her, though admittedly not much.

Gabriella Martin was the worst though. Dana didn’t like to think that way, but she couldn’t help it in this case. Six years old, she had been brought into the emergency room a week before with symptoms of fatigue, body aches, stomach pain, and a fever. Her Father, raising his only daughter on his own, thought she had the flu. It was a cruel surprise when the diagnosis was Leukemia.

“It should have been treatable, damn it!” Dana said in a strangled voice, slamming her fists on the steering wheel suddenly. No one had expected that one. Gabriella’s father had been in shock, just sitting on a bench in the hallway when Dana had come down, sure it was a mistake. His eyes were so dark, so blank, that for one insane second of twisted nostalgia she thought of calling Mulder and telling him there was a zombie sitting in Our Lady of Sorrows Hospital.

Joseph Martin stood as soon as he saw her. “She’s gone, Gabby is gone.” he said in a voice choked with grief but perfectly understandable. “She was all I had, everything. How could God take my only joy away from me, Dr. Scully? What do I do now?”

Sitting in her car, Dana Scully could hear his voice echoing in her ears. She knew it would come to her at night for a long time to come. She had not been able to answer him, had been too shocked herself at the sudden death to be of any help to him.

She could have told him _how_ God could take his daughter, but that wasn’t what he really wanted. He wanted to know _why_ , why a loving and caring God would take from a good man trying his best in life his only child, the only thing in life he cared about. That question she could not answer. She could have told him the usual standby answers, yes. _“God works in mysterious ways.”_ She could have told him that. _“No one can understand the reasons behind God’s actions.”_ She could have said that to him, too. Or maybe her personal favorite would have worked best. She could have patted his shoulder and said _“We must not question God; we should just accept His Will.”_ That was Father Ybarra’s favorite from what she had seen. But she had said none of those things. She had simply said “Mr. Martin, I am so sorry.” before pushing past him and into the room where Gabriella’s face was already covered by a sheet, waiting to make her way to the morgue.

It was her job to offer support at such difficult times, religious support, but to her that was the most trying part of her job. If she were sitting there where Joseph Martin was sitting, and it was William in the room and not Gabriella… William with a sheet covering his face, William who would never run and play again, never say “I love you” to anyone again, never take another breath… If things were reversed, she knew no religious one-liners that would make the least bit of difference. Not to a parent whose child was gone. There was nothing that could make a difference to a Mother or Father with a dead child. She knew. They hadn’t helped her when she lost Emily either, and she had barely gotten to know her daughter. Losing Emily had been hard enough; she couldn’t imagine the heartache of losing her if she had raised her for six years from birth.

So involved with her thoughts, Dana sat in the car for almost twenty minutes before she looked up and realized there was a car in the driveway she didn’t recognize. Her first reaction was a spasm of fear as Gabriella and her Father slipped to the back of her mind, until later when they would keep her awake for hours. She and Mulder didn’t get visitors, and she knew there were still plenty of people who wanted them both dead.

She got out of the car and walked up to the house cautiously. Mulder’s name had been cleared. They didn’t have to worry about him suddenly being arrested anymore. Trying to talk herself out of the panic that was threatening her, Dana was sorry that she no longer carried a gun. She opened the front door slowly, careful to keep herself covered and to not make any sound.

“Mulder?” she whispered into the house. She looked around the door into the den and a soft cry escaped her throat.

“Oh my God! Walter!” she cried. In the den, sitting across from Mulder, was Walter Skinner. He stood up awkwardly as she stepped in and closed the door. He held his hand out to shake, but Dana ignored it. She hugged him and kissed his cheek, making him even more flustered. “I can’t believe it! What are you doing here? It’s been so long!” She had seen Skinner only once since leaving the FBI five years ago, and he had been saving her and Mulder’s hides again than.

Mulder walked over to them and put his hand on Dana’s shoulder. “Dana, I didn’t get much information on William yet, but the Skin-Man here has agreed to help us. He still has his connections in the FBI. Oh, and there’s a little surprise for you tomorrow night.” Mulder said, eyes flashing secretively.

Scully looked at him suspiciously. “What surprise? I swear Mulder, if this surprise has anything at all to do with green or gray men…”

“I can assure you Agent, er, Doctor, Scully that it has nothing to do with aliens. If you’ll sit down here I will explain everything I personally know about your son.” As the three of them sat down in the den Skinner looked at Mulder, his eyes deathly serious. “And Mulder, don’t call me Skin-Man.”

* * *

 

In the Van De Kamp home, Gloria Van De Kamp was putting her son to bed. He was complaining weakly, but as usual it was more of a show than his actually caring that he had to go to bed. “Go on Billy; say your prayers and get in bed. If you’re quick I’ll tell you a story.” She told him, and like always, it worked.

Billy kneeled on the floor next to his bed and rested his elbows on the mattress. Palms pressed tightly together and head dutifully bent, he could have been one of the old oil pictures that were easy to find in thrift stores. His hair fell forward as he intoned the prayer his parents had taught him. “As I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. May Angels watch me through the night, and beyond the morning‘s light. “

Gloria smiled as she watched him, silently thanking God again for the wonderful boy he had seen fit to bless her and Dan with. She brushed his hair back from his face as he said ‘Amen’ and finished his prayer. It always slipped forward when he leaned his head down to pray. She picked him up and laid him in bed. He was almost too big for her to lift already. How the time was flying by. “What story do you want tonight, Bill?” she asked him, sitting on the side of his bed.

Billy thought for a moment. His favorite story was one about a little Martian named Martin who was lost on Earth, but his Father was the only one who told that story. His mother didn’t like it, she thought it was a ‘blasphemous’ story and he knew better than to ask her for it. So he gave her another one of his favorites. “Will you read me ‘Casey at the Bat’ please, Mommy?”

Gloria smiled. Her Father had taught her that poem when she was Billy’s age, and it had always been one of her favorites. It was something she could pass down to Billy that had been special to her, and hopefully would be special to him and any children he might have. “Of course, sweetheart. Now lie back and close your eyes.” Billy did as he was told and she began the poem. She knew it by heart. “The outlook wasn't brilliant for the Mudville nine that day; the score stood four to two, with but one inning more to play…”

Billy was asleep before the poem was half done, but Gloria finished it aloud to the end anyway just to hear it. “And somewhere men are laughing, and little children shout; but there is no joy in Mudville — mighty Casey has struck out.” She pulled the covers up to his chin and pushed the hair off his forehead so she could kiss him good night. “Goodnight, love.” She whispered to him. “Sweet dreams.”

She stood in the doorway to his room after she turned the lights off, watching him sleep. She could feel her heart swelling with love for the little boy, and yet there was still something about him that she had reservations about. It was nothing that kept her from loving him, but was worried for him. She still couldn’t understand his birth mother’s decision to give him up if he was a perfectly healthy child.

But he was healthy; that was an oddity in and of itself. Billy had never been sick once. Never had a cold, or even a fever that she could remember. He had never had a runny nose, never any allergies. No, Billy was a perfectly _healthy_ child. What he was not was a perfectly _normal_ child.

It had come to her attention again at the Church this morning. The entire congregation, children included, attended the hour long service at 9:00. After that the children went to Sunday School and the adults had Prayer Meeting for two hours. There were children twice Billy’s age who had trouble sitting still for the service, and the children who were his age often had to be taken out to keep them from disturbing the other members. At the least they swung their legs, fidgeted, whispered to their parents, and paid little or no attention to the sermon.

Billy was the complete opposite. Billy paid better attention than most of the adults. He didn’t swing his legs against the pew, didn’t look around and out the windows. He hung on every word the pastor said.

Gloria sighed to herself. She was jumping at shadows. Here, she had a son who was healthier than most people could hope to be, and better behaved than any other child she had ever met, and she was finding fault with it! “May God forgive me.” She whispered to herself, shaking her head as she walked away from her son’s bedroom, leaving the door cracked open. “May God forgive me for not accepting His wonderful blessing without questioning it.” 

* * *

 

It was after midnight and Dana was still wide awake, looking through her patient records. Daniel and Dawn-Marie she could understand and accept. Both children had been sick for a long time, and were weak from the battles with their diseases. Even when she had spoken to their parents there had been a certain amount of relief mixed in with their grief. They had watched their children suffer for years, in the case of Dawn-Marie since she was two years old. They had known the end was coming sooner or later, and at least their children were done suffering now.

But Gabriella had been different. In a week she had gone from appearing perfectly healthy, to being diagnosed with a potentially deadly disease, to being dead. That was a lot to accept. The Leukemia had been in the early stages according to her tests. Dana just couldn’t come up with a reason why the six year old would just suddenly die. She fell asleep in the afternoon, took a nap. About 45 minutes after she went to sleep her heart had stopped. No warning, no explanations. She was just dead, and they hadn’t been able to bring her back. It was like her life had been timed, and her time had simply run out.

“Coming to bed soon?” a voice asked from behind her and she jumped, knocking patient files onto the floor.

“Jesus, Mulder, you scared the hell out of me!” she said, not really angry but sounding furious. Normally she heard him walking up, but she had been so engrossed in her work she hadn’t noticed. It frightened her when she became that absorbed in what she was doing. Working in the FBI, she had learned how dangerous it was to not be fully aware of your surroundings at all times.

Mulder grinned at her sheepishly as he bent to pick up the folders and their contents, trying not to laugh. “Sorry. You usually hear me coming.” He glanced at the papers as he collected them. “You’re still working?” he asked, surprised.

“It’s important.” She answered shortly, reaching for the papers he had, and the tone of her voice made him look up at her.

He frowned as soon as he saw her face. He had noticed she was off all night, but he had attributed it to her being worried about William and being caught off guard by Skinner’s visit. He had given her space, figuring she would come to him when she was ready. Looking at her closely now, he could see he had been wrong. She’d been waiting for him to come to her.

Mulder tossed the folders onto the coffee table and sat on the couch beside her. “Dana, what’s wrong?” he asked, and she promptly burst into tears. He hugged her close to him and let her cry on his shoulder until she calmed down enough to tell him what had happened at work. He understood her feelings immediately, the way she connected everything back to William and Emily. For the life of him he couldn’t understand why she wanted to work with children. It bothered her so damn much and he hated to see her hurting and there being nothing he could do about it. But it was what she wanted, so he never said a word. He suspected he didn’t have to though.

At the moment he smoothed her hair and whispered to her softly. “Dana, not everything is your fault, you know. Sometimes, sometimes things just happen. People die, _children_ die. We don’t always have the answer for everything. I think you and I know that if anyone does.”

It was the same things she had been telling herself all day, but somehow they were more of a comfort coming from him. “You don’t understand Mulder. Six year old children don’t just lay down for a nap and not wake up. Not without a reason, and any reason for that should have been caught. She was in a hospital, for Christ sake!”

Mulder smiled at her a bit sadly. “Dana, I have X-Files cases where people of all ages die for apparently no reason. It doesn’t mean that there isn’t a reason, just that we have no way of finding a reason with current technology. Let it rest. She’s gone already, you can’t save her now. You can’t save everybody, Dana. And if you don’t get some sleep, you aren’t going to be able to save anyone.”

Despite her hurt and sadness, she smiled at him. He had a knack for making her smile no matter what that was almost as great as his knack for infuriating her.

Mulder smiled back and wiped her tears away. “You’ve been crying an awful lot the last two days. It’s not that time of the month again, is it Scully?”

Scully laughed out loud at him. “Mulder, you jerk!” she exclaimed, smacking his shoulder lightly. “Keep it up and I’ll make you sleep on the couch by yourself.” she warned him, putting her work in a neat pile on the table. She would have to put everything in order in the morning.

Mulder feigned horror. “No! Not the couch, Scully! Please, not the couch!” he cried, crawling towards her on his knees, his hands together palm to palm in a begging gesture.

Dana laughed at him as he crawled after her towards the bedroom, still begging playfully. Pausing in the doorway she motioned him forward with her index finger. “You better get in here and come to bed if you don’t want to spend the night on the couch.” She told him before walking into the room.

Mulder stood up, grinning, and followed her. Tomorrow John and Monica were coming and they would all get down to business concerning William. Mulder had a hunch there was more to all this than what Scully suspected. His hunch told him that if the boy Billy was their William, there was a reason he was here. Someone wanted him back in D.C. Someone who was more interested in what he was, or what he had been, than his well being.


	5. Chapter 5

Anyone familiar to the Scully-Mulder house, anyone who had lived in the neighborhood for a few months, would have been surprised if they looked at the small house set a little ways back from the road tonight. Normally shadowed and silent, warm light splashed out into the yard. Laughter and the delighted cries of a small child danced out the open den windows.

Monica and John sat across from Dana and Mulder. Two year old Julietta Doggett ran from person to person, giggling shrilly. Dana smiled at the happy little girl and looked back to Monica. “When did you say you got married again?”

Monica blew a raspberry at her daughter. “April 17th, 2004. We wanted to invite you, but we couldn’t get an answer on your mailing address, or any other information for that matter. We weren’t even sure if you were in the country, and we didn’t want to attract any attention to you.” Her tone was genuinely apologetic.

Mulder waved his hand dismissively. “Ah, don’t worry about it. You’re right; they probably would have been keeping tabs on you.” His expression had a shadow of harsh cynicism. He hadn’t forgiven the FBI for trying to kill him and destroy his life’s work. He figured he never would.

Dana scooped Julie up and tickled her. “And just look at this little angel you got out of the deal.” Julie screamed in delight, her laughter thick and childish. “Which department are you guys assigned to, now that the X-Files are closed?” Dana shifted her eyes from Monica to John and back.

John sat up straighter. He looked just slightly uncomfortable for some reason. “I’m with the Missing Persons Unit now. Monica works from home, freelance Private Investigator now and then. Mostly she takes care of Julie.”

“Mine! Dat’s mine Unca Fogs!” Julie’s voice was high and indignant as she tried to snatch her toy back from him.

“Uncle _Fogs_?" Mulder feigned offense, but there was a little smile on his face. Dana, Monica, and John all burst out laughing and he joined them. Mulder took Julie from Dana and sat her on his lap. “Uncle Fogs, huh? We need to talk about that one, kid.”

“I think it fits you. Fogs.” Dana laughed at her fiancé’s expression and blew a kiss to him. She looked back at Monica and John. “She’s so adorable.”

John nodded. He knew how precious his daughter was, what a blessing. He knew what it was to lose a child, and he appreciated her all the more for it. Monica smiled at Dana.

“Thank you. But enough about our baby.” Her face softened into a look of concern and consideration. “What about your baby, Dana? Mulder said you had some information on William.” Monica looked over at John, he took her hand in his, and she turned back to Dana with a sweet and encouraging smile. “We care about him too.” She said, nodding. “Anything we can help with, we want to.”

Dana glanced at Mulder, the expression on her face being one of clear annoyance only to him. Anyone else would have thought it completely neutral. All pretenses for the dinner were done now. It was time for business. Julie sat quietly on Mulder’s lap playing with a toy.

“I told them what you told me. About the little boy at the park. And I told them that we haven’t been able to find anything out about William.”

Dana looked back at John and Monica. “That’s about it, really. Something isn’t right with the whole thing. He’s been too erased. Skinner was here yesterday, and he confirmed that too much has been removed about William's records. Far more than normal, and more than the extra that I asked him to erase for me. Something is wrong.” Dana locked eyes with Monica. “The boy from the park _is_ William. I knew who he was as soon as I saw him. I didn’t know his name; I didn’t know he was adopted. I just looked at him and I _knew_ that was my son.”

“I know what you mean.”    

Dana jumped. She had expected Monica to understand, being a Mother herself. But it was John who had spoken. She could read the deep sadness in him and she knew he was thinking about his son Luke, who had been murdered many years ago as a small boy.

John looked embarrassed. “I know what you mean.” he repeated. “Sometimes, you just know when it’s your kid, sometimes even before you see them. It’s like a sixth sense. Or like they have a smell that you recognize without realizing it.” It was typical of John to take something that sounded extrasensory at first and make it more mundane. “I think it happens with anyone you come to know that well.”

Dana stared at him for a few seconds and nodded. She was thinking of a horribly scarred Jeffrey Spender pretending to be Mulder, and she wondered if he was as well.

“I think so too.” she said quietly. She cleared her throat. “I need more proof though, scientific proof. We think someone is after him, that someone knows who he is. We need to keep him safe. To do that, I need to make sure that Billy is William.”

Monica’s eyes lit up. “I actually have an idea for how to do that. The next time you go to the park, take some juice boxes with you and give one to William. Make sure you get it back after he drinks from the straw. John can have them test the DNA against yours. If you want more proof than that, take a picture of him. I have the software in my home computer, we’ll compare that picture with a baby picture you have of William. We can see how the facial structure matches up. We can also do an age enhancement of William’s baby pictures.”

Dana nodded slowly. "That sounds like it could work! Skinner said he'd run some tests for us if we could get a current picture of William and some DNA. Between you and him, we'll _know_ if it's William. Or, at least we'll be as sure as we possibly can be."

John stopped her. “Wait a minute, before we go any farther with this. Let’s say this boy _is_ William. What are you planning on doing? You’re not going to go in and steal him off these people are you? If that’s your plan to keep him safe I have to say it’s a pretty shitty one.”

“No, that actually wasn’t our plan.” Mulder stepped in, cheeks red with anger, immediately defensive. “Do you think we don’t care about the kid at all? He’s our son, we’re not doing this to try and uproot him. Do you think we want to ruin his life, make him unhappy? Scare the shit out of him?” His voice became louder as he went on, and Julie began to whimper on his lap.

“Did I say you don’t care about him? Did I? I never suggested that! I’m just saying we need to think about William here and what’s best for him at the moment, regardless of what we all might want. I’d love to see Dana get her son back, Hell I’d love to see the kid myself, but it’s not fair to tear him away from the people who raised him now!”

John’s voice rose to match Mulder’s, and Julie’s whimpers turned into fearful wails. Monica walked over and took her. She stood over the two men and scolded them like small children. “Stop it, both of you. What's wrong with you?" she asked the two of them before concentrating on her husband. "Who is this helping, John? We’re here to help them find their son, not pick apart their motives. They aren’t going to do anything to hurt him; you _know_ that.”

Dana stepped in before John could answer. “We aren’t planning to take him. He seems happy and loved there. I want him happy, regardless of who he’s with. I just need to know where he is so I can keep him safe. He’s still my son.” She glanced at Mulder and corrected herself. “Our son. No matter who he’s with, he will always be our son, and we are responsible for him. We can keep an eye on him wherever he is without him knowing a thing unless and until it becomes absolutely necessary that he’s told.”

John settled back into his seat and nodded. He was satisfied for now, even if he was still testy with Mulder. Mulder said nothing. His cheeks were still burning with anger. The silence in the room grew until the air was thick enough to cut. For tonight, any amicability between the men was done with.

Monica sighed and looked at her watch before clearing her throat. “It’s actually getting pretty late, and Julie should be in bed on time if we can help it.

Dana stood up. “Oh, you’re right! It’s after nine already, I didn't realize it was that late! We'll walk you to the door.” As she slipped past Mulder she whispered in his ear. _“Shake his hand!”_

Dana hugged and kissed both Monica and John goodbye, thanking them both for their help. Mulder and John shook hands, John having gotten his own warning from Monica, but they looked more like they were trying to crush one another’s fingers than shake politely. Some heads would never stop butting.

Monica hugged Mulder and kissed his cheek as John started to the car. "Don't pay any attention to John. He gets defensive when he's scared. He really cares about William, that's all. It was really hard on him when Dana had to give him up." She looked at Mulder sadly. "It really is hard for him to express his emotions, except anger. He doesn't feel safe unless he's angry. Just don't let him get to you, Fox. I'll take care of him."

Mulder nodded. He could feel his anger ebbing away, turning into pity. "Thank you for helping us. I really mean it, and I'm sorry I blew up. It, it's a tense situation for all of us I guess." He stood on the stoop with Dana and watched the Doggetts leave.

Julie Doggett waved goodbye frantically over her father’s shoulder at Dana and Mulder. “Bye An Dana! Bye Unca Fogs! I yuv you! I yuv you!”

Dana smiled and waved back. “Bye sweetheart! We love you too!” she called before stepping in and closing the door. Julie had obviously gotten her Mother's open and loving personality. Dana didn’t bother to scold Mulder; it wouldn’t make any difference now that Monica had gotten through to him anyway. In spite of the poor end to the night, she felt happy. Light. At least they had something resembling a plan now. It was more than they had yesterday if nothing else.

* * *

 

Silently spying from the shadows, the man watched as the Doggett family left the Mulder household. He kept his expression perfectly neutral. "The Doggetts are exiting the Scully-Mulder premises." he said into the microphone headset he wore. "It appears that the identity of William John Van De Kamp has been severely compromised. The plan must be moved forward."

The headset crackled and there was the sound of someone taking a drag on a cigarette. After a short pause, a man spoke tightly over the headset. "Very well. Make the arrangements. I want William with me before the visit to the park on Saturday. End the surveillance on the Scully-Mulder household and begin the surveillance at the Van De Kamp home. At the first possible opening, take the boy."

The man made no movement or sound of acknowledgement or agreement. He kept his eyes on the Doggetts as they pulled out of the driveway and regretfully let them leave alive. Sometimes he wondered if his boss was too close to the case, if it clouded his judgment. "What would you like me to do about the Van De Kamps? They are not like the Carsons; they will not let their son's disappearance go quietly."

The headset crackled again, and there was a hint of anger in the controlled voice that came over the phone. "William is not their son. Do _not_ forget that. The most important thing is that the boy is kept safe and this is taken care of as quickly and quietly as possible. As for the Van De Kamps..." There was another pause over the headset. "Do whatever you think is best."

For the first time a smile broke across the man's face. "Yes Sir. I will deal with them at the earliest possible time." He turned the headset off and pulled his semi-automatic out of the glove box. He was about to tear apart the perfect little world the Van De Kamps had created.

* * *

 

William lay awake in bed, thinking. His Father had been surprised when he didn't want a story that night; William always begged him for stories about Martin the Martian when he put him to bed. William told him he was tired, but truthfully, he was preoccupied. There was only one thing he knew for certain now. The Light was not the Angels. But after class, he didn't understand what it could be.

William turned on his left side and frowned into the shadowy corner of the room. If the Light was not the Angels, it wasn't from God than. According to the Church, that meant it was from Satan, The Devil. But, if the Light came from the Devil, than so did he. The Light was inside of him. If he was from the Devil, than he must be an Antichrist. The enemy of God and his son, the ultimate embodiment of Evil.

William turned on his back and glared up at the ceiling. He balled his small hands into fists. "I'm _not_ Evil, I'm not!" he wailed into the darkness, scarcely caring if his parents heard him, though it was still a muted cry. "I can't be evil, can I?" he whispered softly to the empty room.

William turned onto his right side and faced the window. He watched the sky for a few moments before beginning to speak softly. "God? God, I know You're out there, and I know You listen to everyone. God, please don't make me Evil. I don't want to be Evil, I don't want to be an Antichrist! Please God, I'll do anything You want. I don't use the powers the Light gives to me. And I _promise_ I'll try real hard not to Know things I shouldn't, and to ignore it when I do. I swear! Just please don't let me be Evil, God. Please, OK? And please don't let the Light come anymore God." William stopped. He didn't realize he was holding his breath until his burning chest caused him to let it out with a gasp. He was waiting for something, anything. Bells, lightening. Something so he knew God had heard him.

Nothing happened. The only sounds were from outside, a car and some crickets. William smiled to himself suddenly, deciding that the silence and calm were his answer. The smile was serene and grateful. "Thank you God. Amen." William whispered. He turned on his left side, away from the window, and closed his eyes tightly. If the Light came tonight, he wasn't answering it.


	6. Chapter 6

Dana smiled as her niece raced up the stoop and threw her arms around her. “Hi Sweetie, how are you?” she asked the little girl as she picked her up and kissed her cheek. As usual, Matt was slower getting out of the car, busy fussing with his iPod. At ten, he was too cool for hugs and kisses. “Hello Matthew.” Scully called to him.

Matt glanced up from his IPod and made a face at her. “My name’s Matt, Aunt Dana. Matthew’s for dorks.”

Dana rolled her eyes at him and smiled. “Whatever you say, kid.” she said, ruffling his hair as she walked past him. She grinned at the guy in the SUV who had brought the kids over. “Hey Charlie; thanks for dropping them off.”

Charlie Scully could have been Dana’s twin. They had the same greek nose, the same red hair, and the same blue eyes. Both were short with slight builds. Now that they were adults, even their personalities were pretty close. When they were kids, he had teased her mercilessly along with their brother Bill. Now, he grinned at her. “No problem, Big Sister. Bridge loves these Saturday outings with you and Matt, and Chris and I appreciate you taking her. I’m just doing my part.”

Dana started to answer, but a happy squeal from behind them interrupted her.

“Uncle Fox!” Bridget shimmied up his legs and into his arms before he could react, almost knocking him over in her enthusiasm. Mulder had a way with kids, and both Bridget and Matt adored him. “Are you going to the park with us? Please Uncle Fox? You promised to teach me baseball.”

“Hi Honey, how are you? I missed you guys.” Mulder said, kissing her forehead. He spotted Matt and grinned. “Hey Matt.”

Mulder got a grin out of him. “Hey Uncle Fox. You coming today? I’ve been working on that layup you showed me.” Matt’s tone was hopeful, but he tried to hide it, as though he didn’t really care either way.

Mulder made a fist and bumped knuckles with Matt. “You better believe it, buddy. I bet that layup’s better than what I saw on the NBA last week.” Mulder carried Bridget to the car and sat her down. “Hey Charlie. Thanks for the drop off.”

Charlie shook his hand. “Hi Fox, I was just telling Dana it’s no problem.” Much more easy-going than his brother Bill, he had never had a problem with Mulder. Charlie glanced at his watch. “Listen guys, I have to get going or I’m going to be late for my appointment. Thanks again for taking Bridge; Chris’ll be home by 4:00, so any time after that is fine for you to drop them off. Matt’s staying over, so you don’t have to worry about taking him to Bill’s.

Dana leaned in the window and kissed her brother’s cheek. “Thanks again Charlie, I’ll see you later.”

Matt and Bridget were in Scully’s car before Charlie pulled out of the driveway.

* * *

 

The man followed three cars behind Gloria Van De Kamp. His time was almost up. He couldn’t explain how it had happened, how he hadn’t been able to get a clear shot all week, but there you had it. In a few minutes they would be at the playground, and Billy needed to be in his possession by then.

A wheeze from the back of the van made his insides twinge. The boss had come to him when he had been unable to eliminate the threat by Friday night. “Pull up a car.” the thin rasping voice said from the back. He sat in the shadows, but smoke floated up to the front. The only light back there came from the occasional flicker of a lighter as another cigarette was ignited.

The man didn’t answer, just obeyed. It didn’t take long in his line of work to learn that it was better to follow orders without a word. If a man was deemed to be too wordy, he was deemed too dangerous to leave alive. As it was, he was looking down the barrel of a loaded gun at the moment. He had performed miserably in his assignment of eliminating the Van De Kamps and taking William, and unless he managed to turn it around, he knew his name would be next on the list of dispensable agents.

The park was less than three blocks away now. From the back of the van came the sound of someone taking a deep drag on a cigarette. “Pull up a car.”

 

Billy sat in the backseat, fidgeting. He hadn’t really wanted to go to the park today, he had a funny feeling about it, but he had promised God that he would ignore his feelings. So instead of staying home, his Mother was driving him to the park, and he was doing his best to pretend he was excited and not nervous.

“Billy, are you feeling alright?” Gloria asked from the driver’s seat. She wasn’t really paying any attention. Billy had never said anything but ‘yes’ when asked that question. These days she asked it because it felt like the right thing to do, not because she really thought her son was sick or not feeling well.

“Yes Mama, I’m fine.” Gloria smiled at him through the rear-view mirror and went back to watching the road. She had no way of knowing that when he lied he looked identical to Fox and Samantha Mulder when they were six.

The closer they got to the park, the more agitated Billy became. They were pulling into the parking lot before he realized what was wrong with him. It was fear. For some reason he couldn’t explain he felt more terrified than he ever had in his life. It was maybe the first time he had ever really been afraid. Cold sweat lined his forehead and his heart was racing. Gloria pulled into the parking spot and he couldn’t hold it anymore. He started to scream at the top of his lungs.

“I lied, Mommy I lied! I’m sick! I’m sick! Take me home! I don’t want to go to the park! I want to go home!” he shrieked hysterically in a voice so high and loud it was impossible to understand.

Gloria felt her heart leap into her throat. Bill had never, not once, screamed like that before. Her brain felt like it was frozen, she had no idea what could be wrong with him. “Billy, what’s wrong? Tell me what’s wrong Billy! What is? I can’t help if I don’t know, sweetheart! Please tell me what it is!” Gloria’s mind began to race. Had he been bitten by a spider, stung by a bee somehow? The way he was flailing, he looked like he could be having a seizure. She didn’t know what to do, so she unbuckled his seatbelt to get him out of the car where she could look him over. As soon as he was out of the car he ran, back in the direction they had come from. He was almost at the parking lot entrance when a black van swerved in and blocked the exit.

* * *

 

In the back of the van, the man in the shadows stirred. He leaned forward into a triangular patch of light for a moment, and the driver cringed when he saw the terribly scarred face. He had never seen his boss’ face; it had always been hidden in the shadows. “Go. Get the boy, and eliminate the obstacle.”

The man smiled. Without a word he readied his jet black SIG-Sauer P226 semi-automatic pistol. The standard issue gun was traceable to no one, and was common issue for the FBI and CIA, along with many private gun owners. He stepped to the side door and slid it open.

* * *

 

At the playground Mulder, Scully, Bridget, and Matt were playing on the basketball court. The day had been great, and both Mulder and Scully were looking forward to seeing Billy. For Mulder, it would be the first time, and Scully was desperate to see him again. When the screaming started Scully recognized the voice immediately. Her face pinched and she dropped the basketball from numb hands.

“Mulder, that’s Billy.” She whispered, and then she was gone, running towards the parking lot where she could hear the screaming.

Mulder hesitated for barely a second before running after her. “You two, down on the ground and don’t move until we get back!” he yelled to Matt and Bridget as he ran. “Keep your heads covered.” Both kids dropped on their bellies without a question, Bridget beginning to cry.

Mulder overtook Scully just as they reached the top of the small hill that brought the parking lot into sight. He saw a middle age woman chasing an auburn haired boy. Scully recognized them as Gloria and William.

Gloria raced after Billy, terrified he’d run out into the street in his hysterics. “Billy, stop! You’re going to get hurt!” she screamed after him. She barely noticed the van, and didn’t notice the side door slide open or the man dressed entirely in black step out. “Billy, wai-!”

Her last scream was left unfinished. Mulder and Scully saw her head rock backwards while her feet continued in a forward motion for a second. The force knocked her flat on her back and she made no move to get up.

Through his terror Billy registered that his Mother was no longer screaming, and he glanced behind him. What he saw stopped him dead. Only a few yards ahead of her, he could see the small dark space between her open eyes. He was silent a moment, eyes wide with shock, before he started screaming again. “Mom!” He started to run back towards her. “Mommy!”

Mulder and Scully had almost reached them than. Mulder was ahead of her, but he was going after the man in black. Scully saw him reaching into his jacket, and realized he had brought his gun. _Why didn’t I think to do that?_ She railed at herself angrily, but she brushed the thought away. She had to get to Billy. “Billy! Billy, run! Hurry, run to me!” she screamed as the man in black started towards him.

Billy looked up at her, but he wasn’t fast enough. He only got a few steps before the man was on top of him. Ignoring Mulder and Scully, he started back to the van with the little boy, moving quickly and steadily.

“Stop or I’ll shoot!” Mulder yelled, closing the distance between them quickly, Scully on his heels. “Stop!” Mulder aimed the gun and prepared to take a headshot. The only thing that caused him to pause was the boy. He was too close, and Mulder hadn’t fired the gun in years. He couldn’t be sure of his aim anymore.

The man dressed in black was less careful. In one fluid motion he turned and fired the gun at Mulder’s head. The impact spun Mulder around like a top before knocking him face-first to the ground, the gun skittering away from him.

To Scully, it was slow motion. The man turning to face them, the sound of the gunshot, the faint flash of the gunpowder igniting. Mulder spinning to the ground like a feather caught in the wind. “No! Mulder!” she screamed. She couldn’t bear to look at him, she still had to try and get Billy. She grabbed the gun he had dropped and fired it, but the man was already inside of the van again, this time with Billy. The Bullet glanced off the front passenger side door. Who she saw as the door slid shut froze her insides like liquid nitrogen. She fired three more shots as the van pulled away, trying to blow out the tires, but she only managed one and it wasn’t enough.

Dana turned back to Mulder slowly, not wanting to see what she expected to see. Instead of lying on the ground, he was standing up unsteadily, trying to walk towards her. “Mulder!” she cried, and ran towards him. Others who had heard the gunshots were appearing. She could hear several on the phones, calling the police.

Blood coated the left side of his head and face. The front of his face was scraped from his awkward landing. “Mulder, sit down. You’re losing a lot of blood, you shouldn’t be up walking around.” She told him, her doctoring taking over, but he pushed her away, staring in the direction the van had gone, an angry light in his eyes.

 “They got away.” he whispered. “The murdering bastard got away, and he took the kid with him.” Mulder took another step towards the parking lot entrance but staggered and fell to his knees. He slammed his fist into the asphalt, apparently not feeling the pain from it. ‘Damn it, Scully, we lost him!”

Dana walked up behind him, hanging her head. She put her hand lightly on his shoulder. “I know, Mulder. I’m sorry. I lost him.”

He looked up at her. “You didn’t, I did. I should have taken the damn shot when I had the chance.” He sat down and rested his elbows on his knees, head in his hands. “I can’t believe I lost him.”

Dana sat beside him and hugged him close to her. “I could have stopped him too, Mulder. My aim just isn’t what it was when I had to be recertified every three months.” She pulled away from him suddenly. “Let me look at you, Mulder. I want to get a closer look at your head.”

She sighed in relief after she got her look. She held his face gently between her hands and looked into his eyes. “I thought you were dead, you know. When he shot you, and you dropped like that… Mulder, do you know how lucky you are? It’s only a graze, but if it was an inch or so lower, maybe less, the impact on your temple would have killed you. If it was a fraction of an inch to the left, it could have penetrated your brain. You’d be dead or at best a vegetable.”

Mulder reached up and took one of her hands and kissed the back of it. “I know that.” He smiled at her faintly. “I got lucky again.” He took her other hand away from his face and kissed the back of it. “I’m sorry I scared you.”

She smiled at him faintly and laid her head on his shoulder as they waited for the police to come. It occurred to her that they were both strangely calm, considering their son had just been kidnapped, and the woman who’d been raising him killed. She thought than to cover Gloria, but someone else already had. She attributed the calm to shock. One could only endure so much before the emotions shut down. It would hit them within a few days.

“Mulder…” she began softly, uncertainly, not sure how to tell him. He turned to look at her and she swallowed. “Mulder, when I looked into the van, when that man was climbing in… Mulder, the smoking man didn’t die in that explosion in New Mexico.”

Mulder stared at her. “Scully, no one could have survived that explosion. I, we, we watched him turn into a ball of flames! How could he have survived?”

Scully shook her head. “Mulder, I don’t know, but that was him. I will never forget that face, not as long as I live. His face was horribly scarred, probably from the explosion. He had that same little smile on his face. He knew we’d be here, I think he was happy I saw him. And he had one of those damn cigarettes in his hand!” Her voice was a loud whisper, trying to keep the people milling around from hearing them.

Mulder’s response was cut off by the sirens of police cars and ambulances pulling into the parking lot. He forced himself to his feet, swayed, than steadied. He started towards the police, than stopped and frowned. “Scully, where are the kids?” he asked.

Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped. “Oh! Shit, Mulder! Matt & Bridget! I forgot all about them!” She ran back to the basketball court, where Matt and Bridget were still cowering on their bellies, covering their heads.


	7. Chapter 7

Billy sat in the back of the van, wedged in the corner with his knees up. His elbows rested on them, chin in his hands. He watched the man in the wheel chair, curiously, head tilted to the side just slightly. The man in the chair watched him back just as intently, just as silently.

            The uncontrollable fear was gone. Billy understood now that it had been fear not for himself, but for his Mother. Now that she was gone, so was the fear. In its place was a deep and smothering grief, but Billy knew he couldn’t show it. So it laid in wait inside of him, waiting for him to be alone when it would be released in all of its fury. For now, his features were neutral, not betraying his turbulent emotions.

            From the shadows came a dry hacking cough. It was an explosive sound in the bare van. “William.” The name came out a dry heave. “William, come here.”

            The little boy obeyed immediately. Despite the man hardly being able to breathe he had a commanding voice that demanded strict obedience. Billy stood close to the man’s side and just looked at him. His face was still hidden by the shadows. The man watched him, looking for any reaction, as he lit a cigarette. The flash of light was more than enough to reveal his disfigured features, but the child didn’t even flinch. The only emotion that flickered across his face at all was a brief flash of pity.

            The man waved the match out and took a drag on his cigarette. He exhaled, watching the boy all the while. “Do you know who I am, William?” he asked suddenly.

            Billy hesitated for barely a moment and shook his head. “No.” he lied.

            The man smiled than, his usual half-amused little smirk. “I know that you’re lying, William. I know you know who I am. I know about your, abilities.” He took another drag of his cigarette. “And you look like your Father when you lie.” He puffed on his cigarette thoughtfully for a moment, as if pondering his word choice. “Samantha and Jeffrey, too. Family resemblance I suppose. All of the Spenders have that same look when they, blur the truth.” The man seemed to find this amusing, but his quiet chuckle made Billy shiver. If the devil laughed, it would be that same breathless rustle. “Now, who am I, William?”

            Billy was silent for a moment, watching the man in the chair, weighing his options. When he spoke it was in a soft whisper. “You’re my Grandfather.”

            “Your Grandfather? Is that that I am, then?” The man began to laugh, and the laughter quickly turned into a coughing fit. The cigarette man turned a deep shade of violet before he was able to catch his breath, but it was still obvious that he was pleased with Billy’s answer. He reached out and squeezed the boy’s upper arm, not to hurt him, but out of something like affection. “Very good William, very good.”

Despite Billy’s misgivings about the man, he couldn’t help smiling at the praise. There was a twinkle in the man’s eye that was not unfriendly, and while Billy did have certain abilities, he had purposely left them undeveloped. He couldn’t discern the truth when it was carefully blended into near truths and half-lies, and the man before him was the king of these kinds of deceptions.

His Grandfather was smiling at him now. He held Billy’s wrist and pulled him closer. “I am many, many things, William, not all of them things to be proud of. To some I would be called great, and to others I am a Monster of the highest degree. But to you, I am simply and foremost, your Grandfather.” He looked almost sad for a moment as he drifted into thought. “It’s an answer your Father would have given in your place. You’re very like him. Intelligent, soft-hearted, forgiving, curious…” The old man trailed off in a breathless whisper. He took a deep breath and began again in a quiet croak. “He would have been something special, like you are, if it weren’t for his damned values.” The man’s eyes glazed slightly as he remembered times long gone. “He could have been great if he would have followed me.”

Billy stood beside him, watching him guardedly. The man fell silent, and stayed that way for so long that Billy began to think he might have fallen asleep. Just as he became sure that he must have the man looked up at him.

He put out his cigarette and pulled Billy onto his lap with surprising strength for someone who looked so frail and fragile. “You will be great someday, William. Greater than even your Father could have been. You, unlike him, have been chosen by powers greater than anything on earth. You know that, don’t you?”

Billy nodded. He knew what his Grandfather meant. The Light. Somehow, his Grandfather knew about the Light. That knowledge made him feel more comfortable than he could ever remember feeling. It was as though he were with someone who was truly capable of understanding him.

 The old man looked Billy straight in the eyes. He had worked with many children like Billy, and he knew how to trick the abilities they possessed. With Billy’s being undeveloped and raw, he had no way to tell that the emotions he sensed from the man were projected. Naïve and trusting, it didn’t occur to him that his Grandfather would trick him.

“I care for you a very great deal, William, just as I cared for your Father. I wanted the world for him, but he pushed me away. He had his own life to live, and I must respect that.” The cancer man looked at William sadly. “What truly hurts me is that he would put the search for his truth before you, his own son. Barely around to support your Mother while she was pregnant, and disappeared again when you were just an infant, a newborn.”

William stared silently. He was using his ability to read emotions, to know, just as the cancer man knew he would.

The man continued as if oblivious. “Your Mother, well, she wanted you, certainly. Your Father wanted you. He’s not a cruel man, not unloving. But the both of them were married to their work, they always were. There was no time for a child. Dana, she didn’t realize what she was in for when it came to having a child. Your Father was never around, she had to care for you on her own. It didn’t leave time for anything else, and she was terribly unhappy with her life. And when it came down to it, between protecting and raising you and following your Father in his search… Well, the Van De Kamps were good to you at least, weren’t they, William?”

Billy looked at him in hurt shock for a few seconds. “But, but didn’t you help her? My Mother? If you love me, you were around, right? And, wh-why didn’t I go to live with you if, if my parents didn’t, didn’t, want me?” His tone was agonized, and he looked at his Grandfather with injured eyes. The smile he received in return and the tone of his Grandfather’s voice were perfect for his little act. He’d expected the questions.

“I’m afraid I was not allowed to be around, William. Your parents never cared much for me. Our personalities are far too different. Your Mother adopted you out secretly, anonymously, with no one’s knowledge. Even your Father was unaware of it. Besides this secret adoption, I was a very sick man when you were born, William. I still am, as you can see, though I was much worse off than. I was expected to die very soon. I would not have been allowed to take you. Could I have done so, I would have given every star in the sky for you. Unlike your parents, family is everything to me, you see.”

Billy nodded, taking in everything his Grandfather said, believing every last word. He had wondered about them for a long time, but had been unwilling to find out anything because he would have to use his abilities. Now that he knew the truth, it left him feeling crushed and enraged.

The man smoothed Billy’s hair gently. “I spent the last five years searching for you. It was only recently that I was able to discover your whereabouts. I had planned to speak with your adopted Mother today about seeing you.” His eyes turned steely and cold. “Apparently, my driver had other ideas as to how the meeting would go. I promise you that will not go unpunished, William. I know Gloria was good to you, that she loved you. Her death will be avenged.

William just nodded, a lump in his throat not letting him speak.

His Grandfather looked away. “Strange that your parents were at the park today, wasn’t it? I wonder if perhaps my driver is working for them, in a misguided attempt to get you back.” His tone suggested that he was merely speaking his thoughts aloud, but he was delighted when Billy sat up, paying sharp attention, just as he had calculated for him to do. “But don’t worry, William. When we arrive at my home, I will take care of the driver personally. You have an Aunt and Uncle who are desperate to meet you waiting there, this will be a wonderful surprise for them. I’ll see that your Father, Mr. Van De Kamp, is notified of where you are. I’m sure he’ll be along to take you home very shortly.”

Billy smiled when the cancer man mentioned his Father. “You’re going to call Daddy?” His happiness faded as suddenly as it had come. “Will I still get to see you?” he asked shyly. “If I go with Daddy, I mean?”

His Grandfather smiled. He had his grandson exactly where he wanted him. “Don’t worry about that now, William. I’m sure he won’t have any problem with it, especially if it is what you want.”

“It _is_ what I want.” Billy said firmly. He hugged his Grandfather suddenly. “They can’t keep me away anymore! I know the _truth_ now.” Billy looked up at him. “You’ll find out if, if my birth parents had anything to do with what happened to my Mom, right?”

The cigarette smoking man nodded. “Oh yes, William. We’ll find out, don’t worry about that. I love my son, and I respect his wife, but I won’t allow them to kill innocent people. If that is what they have come to, they will pay.”

Billy looked away, nodding, the seeds of hatred his Grandfather had so carefully planted beginning to grow. He remembered meeting the woman in the park, knowing who she was as soon as he saw her. He remembered the strong feelings she had felt of wanting to take him home. He didn’t doubt, with feelings so strong, that she would kill for what she wanted. It had to have been them, his birth parents. “Good.”

* * *

 

The Scully-Mulder household looked like the FBI Headquarters. Mulder, Dana, Monica, and Skinner had enough laptops and equipment set up to outfit an entire unit. John was on his way there from work, where he was heading the official investigation into the kidnapping.

Dana watched the news. When you were working outside of the official investigation, the press often had the news before you. Most of the time, the media knew about leads before the agents themselves did. Trying to watch every news station at once, however, was next to impossible.

Scully turned the sound up on one of the televisions as a picture appeared of Billy Van De Kamp with both of his parents.

“… of now it appears that the boy’s Father, 47 year old Daniel Van De Kamp is the prime suspect in the abduction. Our sources tell us that the FBI and local law enforcements have been unable to find Mr. Van De Kamp and that he was not at work at the time of the shooting and abduction, as was previously believed. His full name is Daniel Jacob Van De Kamp, he stands 6’1” and weighs approximately 180 lbs. He has gray eyes and light brown hair that is graying. He drives a black 2006 Toyota Camry, but may be driving an unmarked black van that was spotted at the scene of the abduction. If anyone sees a man fitting this description, they are urged to immediately report the sighting to law enforcement.”

Dana tuned out as the description was repeated, along with a description of Billy. She turned the TV down again, and jumped as Monica touched her arm lightly.

Monica smiled at her and handed her a cup of tea. “Here. It’s herbal, my own blend. It’ll help relax you.”

Dana smiled faintly and muttered a thanks as she took it, but she didn’t drink. She didn’t want to relax, she wanted to find her son. “How is the age enhancement coming and the comparisons?”

“They’re coming.” Monica replied. “It’s a little slower on these home computers, but we’ll know soon. Anything new on there?” she asked, gesturing to the television.

Dana shook her head. “Nothing important. Their blaming Gloria’s husband Dan. I’d care a little more if I didn’t already know who was behind it.”

Monica nodded, looking away. Everyone, Mulder included, was having trouble believing that CGB Spender was alive and well enough to be abducting children and killing their parents. “Maybe he’s working for him.”

Dana shrugged. “It’s possible.” She stood up and began pacing the room again. She couldn’t stand just sitting there. She wanted to be out on the street, looking for him. Finding him before the bastard he was with could hurt him like he had hurt Samantha and Jeffrey, his own children.

The house fell eerily quiet as everyone worked, no one really knowing what to say. Tension built up until John came half an hour later, when the air was thick enough to swim through. His face was grim when he came in.

“You can turn that garbage off.” He nodded towards the televisions where Dan Van De Kamp’s face was now prominently displayed on all of them. “Dan Van De Kamp was found dead three hours ago. They found his car on the side of the highway. He was in the trunk, shot execution style.”

John sat down on the couch. “The official story’s going to be he was in trouble for embezzling, so he killed the wife and went on the run with the kid.” No one said anything, but they had all been in the FBI long enough to understand. John looked directly at Scully. “They’re covering it up. You were right about who’s involved, that’s for sure. It goes all the way to the top. We’re on our own, and the government, not just the FBI, but the whole damn thing, is going to do it’s best to make sure no one ever finds out what really happened. Word I got is that anyone suspected of mucking around in this is as good as dead.”


	8. Chapter 8

Samantha Spender stood beside her husband, watching out the bay window for her Father and nephew. She was pacing back and forth like an excited child, and every now and then she would glance at her husband and smile slightly.

Henri didn’t return the smile. The muscle bound man was tall and strong with a blonde crew cut. At a glance he would be taken for a career marine who was very dedicated to his physique. He was also unendingly serious. He stood next to the window, not looking out, with his arms crossed in front of him. “They’ll be here in a few minutes, Samantha. That won’t make them come any faster.”

Samantha spun away from the window to face him, a guilty little grin on her face. “But it’s Him, Henri! Aren’t you excited?” She stopped as the words fell from her mouth and she gave him a sheepish look. “Well, not excited, maybe. Not you. But anxious? Expectant? Something? It’s Him, I can’t believe we are going to see Him after so long!”

Without waiting for Henri to reply, she turned back to the window and watched for them, twirling a strand of her dark hair around her long slender index finger. Despite the age lines beginning around her eyes and nose, there was something profoundly childish in her. When the van pulled into the drive, she practically bounced up and down.

“They’re here!” she cried, dashing from the room and down the hall, out onto the sprawling front steps. Henri followed behind her at a steady unrushed pace. Samantha paused just outside the front door, excitement making her chest tight, a wide smile spread across her face, before dashing down the marble steps and towards the van. Henri appeared a moment later, but he stood and waited at the top of the stairs.

The man dressed in black paused when he saw her before opening the door to let his passengers out. He let down a ramp so the Cigarette Smoking Man could wheel himself out, but William he lifted out and set on the ground before standing at attention next to the van.

The cancer man waved to Samantha when he saw her, and she stopped. “Is that Him, Daddy?” she called. “Is it really William?”

The man in the wheelchair pointed to her and leaned close to William. “That’s your Father’s sister, your Aunt Samantha.” Billy stared into his face for a long moment and then looked at Samantha. She held her arms out to him, smiling brilliantly, and he ran to her. He had never known any family except for adopted parents. An Aunt was something he had never believed he would have.

The cancer man watched William run towards his Aunt. He spoke to the man in black without looking at him. “You very nearly killed my son. Your aim is superb, but I’m afraid I don’t take those kinds of chances.” The man in black turned to look at him and as he did the cancer man fired. The driver was dead by the time William was in Samantha’s arms.

Samantha watched him fall to the ground and felt a shocking jolt go through her. Even now, death was still a blow to her. She pulled William in the other direction, towards the house, without letting him look. “Come on, William. Let’s get inside, I’ll get you something to eat, or drink, and you can meet your Uncle Henri…” she chattered happily to him, guiding him along, not letting him see the death behind him.

The Cancer Man gazed down at the body without pity. Despite everything, no one took chances with his son. He still anticipated pulling Mulder over to his side, one way or another. “Take care of the body. The incinerator is in the basement.”

The tall teenage boy who stepped out of the bushes nodded and went to work in silence. Mulder could have told you he bore a striking resemblance to the late Alex Krycek, and in fact was the spitting image of Alex when he was about 16.

The Cigarette Man slowly wheeled himself towards the house.

* * *

 

Dana paced through her living room. She had given so much to the FBI, given up so much in the course of her work there, and still, her son was missing, an innocent little boy, and they were blocking her every step. At that moment, she wanted very much to shoot any one of the bureaucratic bastards.

“Monica, that age progression, is it done yet?” she asked, looking over her shoulder. Her voice was sharp and authoritative, and she immediately felt a flinch of regret. These people were her friends. They weren’t here doing a job, they were here because they wanted to help her and Mulder. And William. But as usual Monica was cheery and unperturbed.

“Just about, Dana” she answered, smiling somehow. “But the structural comparison will be done faster. The results are printing now.”

Dana made her way over to the ancient and overworked printer where it was attempting to print out a very complicated sheet of information. Scully snatched it away from the machine as soon as she could pull it free. Staring at the paper, she felt a sense of dizziness come over her. She sat down heavily on a chair.

“Scully, are you alright?” Skinner peered at her through his glasses, the old look of worry etched across his face. She actually looked up and laughed at him as a feeling of déjà vu made her feel sick. How many times had he looked at her that way, asked her that very same question, in that identical tone, when she had been pregnant with William and only he had known? How many times?

“It’s a match.” She said finally, still laughing, the giggle taking on a feel of lunacy. “The facial structures match. Besides DNA, it’s about as close as we’ll come to knowing if he is William or not.” She gasped between hysterical giggles and snorts of laughter. She didn’t know why it was such a disorienting feeling, this affirmation. She had known all along, hadn’t she? She had _known_. From the first time she had seen him, she had known beyond all doubt he was their son.

* * *

 

Billy sat on Samantha’s lap on the floor of one of the sitting rooms. It was bright, furnished almost entirely in creams and whites. Spread around them on the floor were pictures. Mulder and Scully, Samantha, Jeffrey, CGB Spender, Teena Mulder, and various other members of the Spender family all smiled up from various pictures.

“I’ve been collecting these, for you Billy. All of them just for you.” Samantha told him, holding the little boy close. The love and happiness that came from her was genuine. The pictures, were less so. More than a dozen individuals accounted for all the pictures of Samantha Mulder, with very few being of the real Samantha, the original one.

Billy stared at them in delight. He had never imagined he had such a large family. He had only ever known his adoptive Mother and Father. Any family they may have had were dead, or so long out of touch they may as well have been.

“Look, here’s your Daddy and I when we were little.” Samantha pointed to a picture from when she was about 6, and Fox must have been about 10, standing in front of a tree. “You look so much like him.” She told Billy, and hugged the boy tightly again.

They had been looking at the pictures for better than an hour now. Henri and CGB Spender had been in the hallway for most of this time, discussing things in hushed voices. Billy tried now and then to listen in, using his abilities, but his aunt kept him distracted with the pictures and various stories. But enough was enough now.

“Where’s my Daddy?” he asked Samantha suddenly, looking into her face. “My Grandfather said he was coming for me. What’s taking him so long?” Samantha looked fretful for a moment, and Billy caught the fear and nervousness coming off her. “What’s wrong? What aren’t you telling me?” he demanded, his voice rising to an angry shriek as he climbed to his feet. “ _Where’s my Daddy_?”

Billy made a dash for the door, a now familiar panic overtaking him. He threw the door open and dashed straight into Henri’s arms. One look at the man’s eyes and his struggles stopped. Henri was the kind of person who exuded strength and authority, and just their look demanded obedience. Billy stared at him for a moment. “Where’s my Daddy?” he asked. Like Mulder, he was brave, and naturally resistant to authority. He didn’t scream, and he did not have an attitude, but he didn’t whisper or speak nervously either.

“Perhaps I should answer that.” CGB Spender wheeled himself around to the other side of Henri. The day’s activities had taken a toll on the sick old man, and he was pale, his breathe a wheeze. There was a rather disturbing bluish cast to his color. He motioned the boy over to him, and despite looking quite corpse-like, he pulled the boy onto his lap, once more displaying a surprising amount of strength.

Billy stared into his eyes. “He’s dead, isn’t he?” he asked tonelessly. “Just like Mommy…” His eyes fell through the old man instead of on him for a moment.

The Cancer Man merely nodded at his grandson sadly. “I’m afraid so, William. It would appear your birth parents have this planned out much more extensively than I would have imagined.”

Billy’s eyes snapped back into focus on his Grandfather. “I knew it was them.” He said quietly, his voice furious. “What happens now? Am I going to stay here, with you?”

The Cigarette Smoking Man’s face and voice were deathly grave, and this time there was no acting. “Absolutely not. This is far, far too close to your parents. They still have connections in the FBI. And, your Mother saw me I believe, when the van door opened.”

The old man paused to catch his rattling breathe and Billy stared at him in stricken terror. “But, than, where will I go?” he asked. His mind went back to movies like Annie, and the orphanages where the children lived. “Are you going to send me to an orphanage?” he asked quietly, trying to be brave.

“It was considered,” the Smoking Man said “in order to protect you. Do what your Mother had done, and have you placed anonymously. Change your name and birthday.” He glanced over at Henri, who was speaking quietly to Samantha, who looked both grief-stricken and enraptured at the same time. “However, your Uncle Henri came up with another option, if you are willing.”

Billy gazed up at his Grandfather and then over at his Aunt and Uncle. “What is it?” he asked in a small nervous voice that was never the less steady and unwavering.

“Samantha and Henri live in France, and they have, adopted, several children. Children much like yourself, incidentally, children who display certain, abilities, shall we say?” CGB paused to gauge Billy’s reaction and was pleased to see that the boy was wary, but open and curious. It would not take much convincing. “Your Father believes Samantha is dead, and has no idea about Henri, or their home in the French Alps. You would be safer there than anywhere else I could place you.”

Billy was quiet for a moment. “You, want me to move, to France” he asked slowly with some reservation. The other children his Grandfather had mentioned were not lost on him, but he didn’t say anything. He had never realized there were others out there like him.

The Cancer Man nodded. “At least until I am able to get this problem with your birth parents taken care of. It’s the only way to make sure you are safe from them. After that, if you wish, arrangements could be made for you here, closer to home.” This last part was so much a lie that Billy very nearly caught it. It was of course _possible_ to find a group in the States for William, but CGB Spender would never place him in one of those. He had always intended for William to go in Henri’s group, and that was where he would go and stay whether he liked it or not.

Billy thought hard, weighing options he didn’t really have. On one hand, the thought of moving to another country was unthinkable. Terrifying. So was the thought of leaving behind this Grandfather he had just found, who was so obviously ill and on his last leg of this life. On the other hand, the thought of his murdering parents getting him and taking him away forever was far, far worse.

He looked towards his Aunt and Uncle, and Samantha caught his eye this time, giving him a sad little smile. She walked over to crouch beside the wheelchair where Billy sat on his Grandfather’s lap, bringing her down to his eye level, and brushed the hair back gently from his forehead. “Would you like that sweetheart, living with Uncle Henri and I for awhile?” Samantha gave him a wide smile, and it lit up her face, taking a good 15 years off her features and making her appear absurdly childish. “You can think of it as a vacation, honey. A fun trip.”

Billy couldn’t help returning the smile. “I guess so…” he said a bit shyly. Then he frowned and turned back to his Grandfather. “But, what about you?” he asked, a bit querulously. CGB started to gasp out an answer, but Samantha got it out before he could.

“Billy, your Grandfather is my Dad.” She said. She smiled at him softly, her arm around him, her head resting lightly on his small shoulder. “You’ll see him sweetie, don’t worry about that. He comes and visits us, we come and visit him, just like we are now.” Samantha gave him a little hug. “There are so many ways to stay in touch.”

Billy nodded. It all made sense. “OK Aunt Samantha. I’ll come with you and Uncle Henri.”

The Cigarette Smoking Man smiled. “Good boy William. I’m proud of you.” He slid the little boy off his lap and looked up at Samantha. “Take him Sammi. You need to get going. I’ve put as many roadblocks for Mulder and Scully as I can, but you need to be out of the country within the hour. I’ve arranged a plane to be waiting for you at the airport.”

Samantha nodded, her hands on Billy’s shoulders. She leaned down and kissed the Cancer Man on his cheek. “I understand Daddy. You don’t have to worry; I won’t disappoint you.”

* * *

 

Scully paced through the small home she shared with Mulder. She was trying his cell phone for the 9th time in a row and still no answer. “Damn it Mulder!” she cursed, throwing the phone down on her bed. Sighing, Dana sat down heavily on the bed and picked the phone up again, jabbing the redial button viciously. This time she left a terse message for her husband. “Where are you Mulder?” she snapped into the phone, and then paused briefly. “The results came back, the comparisons. He’s our son.” She ended the call.

* * *

 Mulder sat in his car, tapping the steering wheel with his fingers and biting his lower lip. He watched the FBI building intently, looking for some type of clue as to who was behind the roadblock, behind the boy’s kidnapping. On the passenger seat beside him his phone went unanswered, accidentally left on silent.

* * *

 

Somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean, a private jet transported Samantha Spender-Saint Charles and Henri Saint Charles back to their home in France. With them was their newly adopted son, William John Saint Charles. The paper work was all official, signed by both the American and French governments, and carefully and thoroughly covered up by top representatives of both nations. Officially speaking and according to all records, William John Mulder and William John Van De Kamp had never existed.


	9. Chapter 9

Bright and early Summer faded into the red and golds of Autumn before long, and then into the barren cold of winter. Still, there was no sign of William. Mulder and Scully exhausted every avenue of information available to them. They discovered nothing about their son’s whereabouts, only that the Shadow Syndicate was much more alive and well than they would have believed. Their destruction had been far from complete.

Scully sat in the living room and stared glumly out the window. Freezing rain and sleet splatted heartily against the large glass windows. Though it had been cold enough for snow for better than a month now, the weather had simply stayed cloudy, occasionally breaking in periods of freezing rain, sleet, and hail. Like it was now. Christmas was only a few weeks away, but there was no tree, no decorations at the house this year. If not for the decorations that could be found everywhere around town, Mulder and Scully both would likely have forgotten about the holiday entirely, so absorbed were they in finding their son.

Scully sighed and looked away from the window. Tried to get back to her work. But even her beloved work with the sick children could no longer pull her attention away from William. She knew that if she didn’t figure something out soon, her job, and her entire medical career, would be in jeopardy. Father Ybarra didn’t need much reason to get rid of her, he didn’t care for her at all, and he had already spoken with her twice in private about the changes in her work ethic and demeanor.

* * *

 

High in the snow-blanketed French Alps, a large cottage on the side of the mountain was decorated cheerfully for the holidays. It looked like a Gingerbread House, or maybe the witch’s house in Hansel & Gretel. Either way it presented a cheery, jolly atmosphere as Christmas quickly approached.

The cottage was a little ways up the mountain from a small village, and the family that lived there was well-known by the villagers, and well-liked. A Mother, a Father, their two natural-born children, and four adopted children. The most recent addition had arrived only a few months earlier. The Father worked with the government, and appeared to be a military man. The Mother stayed home with the children, who were homeschooled. Most of the people living in the village felt she had the air of a teacher about her; she seemed to be intelligent and well-educated, eloquent. The entire family was extremely polite and well-mannered, but they kept to themselves. They didn’t come down to the village very often, and when they did, they mostly stayed together and talked very little to the villagers. None of the villagers thought about them very much at all, and no one had any problems with them.

Samantha St. Charles hummed as she buzzed about the kitchen, baking cookies. Outside a brief snow storm had blown up. In the dining room the older children sat around the table, finishing the homework she had given them. The oldest, her only natural son, was 14 year old Victor, and he sat at the head of the table, keeping to himself as he breezed easily through the science and math homework. With straight unstyled black hair nearly to his shoulders and his pale skin, Victor resembled a young Severus Snape. His consistent scowl was in place, and the other children knew better than to ask him for help with anything. To the right of Victor was Ellis, 11. She was finishing her English reading, and agreeing to help the younger children with their assignments. Also pale, but with white-blonde hair with a slight red tinge she looked very much like Dakota Fanning. Beside her was Derek, 8 years old, a tall and well-built black boy with short curly dark hair. He was waiting impatiently for Ellis to finish her assignment, and not even attempting his own in the mean time. To the left of Victor was Joy, 7, a cheerful and round-faced girl with pink cheeks and shoulder-length dirty blonde hair. She was passing a note back and forth with William, who sat to her left. They weren’t supposed to talk until their assignments were finished, unless it was about their assignments, and this was an easy way to get around the rule, unless Ellis or Victor noticed. The youngest of the St. Charles children, Amy, 3 years old and the spitting image of Samantha with her dark curly hair and hazel eyes, sat at the end of the table opposite Victor, coloring happily while waiting to help her Mother decorate cookies.

Ellis looked up from her work just as William slid the note back to Joy. The older girl frowned at them disapprovingly. “Will and Joy, you better get your worked finished if you want to go down into town tonight.” She chided them. She had a heavy English accent. The two younger children looked at her guiltily, and Joy crumpled up the note.

It was the way things worked at the home. Ellis and Victor were the two eldest, and they looked after the other children, almost like a second set of parents. Ellis was strict, but fair, and generally well-liked by the other children. Victor had a cruel streak, and his presence alone was usually enough to dissuade the other children from doing anything wrong. Amy was the baby, and most of the time she was with Samantha and not the other children. There was also the slightest of distinctions where Samantha was concerned with Victor, Amy, and William. She treated the children fairly, but there was a certain extra fondness towards the three that were blood related to her. Tonight, they were going into the village below when Henri came home to see the annual Christmas Tree Lighting.

William had settled in at the cottage nicely. It was a change from the Van De Kamps, certainly, where Will had been the only child and the light of his parent’s lives. Here he was one of six, always waiting in line for a turn for whatever he was doing, always having to share. But, Will was naturally a kind and easy-going boy, and he adapted to the new situation well. He enjoyed the other children for the most part, especially Joy, who was so close to his age and had taken an immediate liking to him. There was even something about her that was familiar to him. Apart from having siblings, and a rather distant and absent father, Will’s home life hadn’t really changed all that much.

School was different now, of course. For the first time in his life William was being challenged academically. And it wasn’t just the school work, either. Henri put all of them through a rigorous physical training routine, both group and individual. Always powerful and muscular, Will was much more so now. And then there was training their abilities. The other children all possessed the same abilities as William, and Henri and Samantha both taught them to harness the power of the abilities, to put them to use, to make them stronger.

The abilities that had so plagued Will growing up with the Van De Kamps, that had made him feel different and evil there, gave him a strong sense of pride here. At first he’d been unwilling to work with them, to even try, and his Uncle Henri had been furious, and even his Aunt Samantha had been confused and upset at his utter refusal to cooperate. It had been Joy who had convinced him to give it a chance, and when he did he discovered he had something like a natural talent for them, even among the other children, who had all been practicing them for much longer.

Despite being happy at the cottage, and feeling more at peace with himself than he could remember ever being before, William still thought about the Van De Kamps often, and a hatred towards his birth parents burned brightly inside of him. Everything he did was working towards being able to get justice for his parent’s murder. Whenever he needed any fuel for his abilities, all he had to think of were his birth parents still walking around free, and the surge of anger, hatred, and adrenaline was more than enough.

Samantha walked into the dining room from the kitchen, hands on her hips but her eyes twinkling happily. “You guys better be behaving yourselves.” She warned. “You don’t want to miss visiting Santa Claus, do you?”

William and Joy doubled their efforts, and Amy squealed with delight. Ellis didn’t react at all, it was difficult to get her to show emotion for much of anything. But Victor snorted derisively, and Derek rolled his eyes in disgust. Normally it was left at that. But this time Victor slammed his book shut suddenly and stood, shaking his head angrily. “Really, Mother. I wonder about you sometimes.” And he stomped away to the room he had to himself in the attic, the other children and Samantha staring after him, surprised, even Ellis.

* * *

 

Mulder walked into the little house he and Scully shared, and the oppressive silence immediately blanketed him. The sorrow in the home was so thick and suffocating, it brought a cloak of depression over you as soon as you walked in. He walked through the dining room and into their den. Scully sat on the couch, files spread across the table, staring out the window. She had no idea he was home. Mulder felt the atmosphere in the house, and in his fiancé, seep further into his soul. It was truly a sign of the times that someone could enter their home, not even trying to be quiet, and Scully didn’t notice.

“Hello the house!” Mulder called, jerking her attention towards him and giving her a small smile, hoping for one in return. He thought that she at least tried but just found it to be too much of an effort.

Scully made a half-hearted attempt to straighten the files on the table but abandoned the effort quickly. “I didn’t hear you come in.” she muttered at him absently. There had been a time when such a lack of observation would have been troubling to her, but she barely noticed it now. She looked up at him suddenly. “Mulder… We need to talk.”

He nodded and sat down diagonal to her, on the loveseat, and draped his coat over the arm. The rain and melting ice dripped off the coat, soaking into the chair’s fabric as well as dropping to the hardwood floor in a messy puddle. Neither Mulder nor Scully took any notice. He nodded to her. “I know we do.”

They sat in silence for a few long moments, he waiting and she unsure how to begin. When she finally spoke the break in the silence came like shattering glass.

“Mulder, I need to quit my job.” It came out quickly, breathless. “Or, at least take a leave of absence for now.” She looked at him, waiting for some kind of reaction, but Mulder only nodded passively, slowly. So she went on.

“I can’t concentrate on what I’m doing, and my job is too important for that. I can’t do it half-hearted, without my full attention. Those kids deserve all of my concentration, not a little bit here and there. They _need_ to be their doctor’s entire focus, and I can’t give them that. And not just that, but William deserves and needs all of my time and attention right now. And, I think it’s time for me to make that come first.” She stopped and waited, unwilling to go on until he reacted in some way, but he just looked at her, nodding. “Well, Mulder?”

Still nodding slightly, Mulder licked his lips. “I think you are absolutely right that those kids need your full attention and you can’t give them that right now, and that means it’s time to get away from the hospital for awhile.” He reached out and put his hand on her knee. “You know I’m with you all the way. We’re in this together, and whatever decision you need to make I’m going to support you in. You got me, Babe.” He told her, and winked.

Tears of gratitude shown lightly in Scully’s eyes, and his Cher reference finally provoked a small smile out of her. She put her hand over his and squeezed it gently. “Thank you, Mulder.”

He puffed his cheeks out and nodded again, looking her up and down slightly. “Anytime.” He paused for a moment, and then asked her. “What are you planning?”

Scully bit her lip and shrugged slightly, looked away. “I, don’t really know. All I know is that I will go anywhere and I will do anything, and I’m not stopping until I know our son is safe.”

* * *

 

Samantha and Henri walked through the snowy streets of the tiny village. William and Joy were at the front of the group, hand in hand, smiling and pointing at the lights and decorations. Ellis and Derek walked calmly next to one another just ahead of Samantha and Henri. Ellis politely looked at what was around her, but she had no real interest. Derek’s arms were crossed, and he feigned annoyance, but now and then it was obvious that he liked the colorful displays. Victor plodded on a few feet back from his parents, sulking in his usual silence. Amy sat on her Mother’s hip and stared about in an unusual silence brought on by awe.

“Isn’t it just beautiful Henri?” Samantha asked her husband, smiling widely at him. He gave a slight grunt that could have been approval or disapproval, and Samantha’s smile faltered slightly. They walked on a little farther in silence, making their way towards a little hand-crafted toy store on the other side of the village, where the Santa Clause was. A slight wind blew, sending stray snowflakes off nearby trees swirling into the streets. Samantha reached out and took Henri’s hand. He let her take it, but shrugged her off after a few steps. Samantha felt a chill wash over her that had nothing to do with the cold weather. Tears prickled at her eyes suddenly but she pushed them away and sped up to walk with Joy and William. Henri didn’t seem to notice.

In the toy store, the children gathered together around Santa Clause for a picture. Amy sat on one knee, William leaned on the other. Joy leaned over William’s shoulder, arm around him, head against him. Victor stood beside Santa on Amy’s side, unsmiling, and Derek stood just to the side of him. Ellis stood just behind Joy, one hand resting elegantly on the back of Santa’s chair. Samantha bought a frame while they were in the village, and put the picture in it on the mantle above the fire place when they got home.


	10. Chapter 10

The weather in D.C. broke just about a week before Christmas. The sleet and ice turned into graceful snowflakes seemingly overnight, and the miserable gray skies went a stark solid white. There was a cheerfulness that pervaded the air as children finished up the last few days of school before the holiday break, and people rushed about to finish up the last of their holiday shopping. Tucked away on a quiet little street, however, the Mulder home was still damp and dark, a spot of irrepressible gloom in this happy little world.

            Since Scully had put in a leave of absence from her job Mulder had been spending more time at home, researching on the computer in his office, while Scully went out and scoured the area for any signs of William. They had nothing to go on, no idea where he could be, although they were in agreement that he was most likely not in the Washington D.C. area anymore. The few leads they had found had all ended in dead ends or simply gone cold. John was pushing as much luck as he could without raising too much suspicion in the Missing Persons Department, and Monica was working the case from home on her own as Private Investigator. Skinner was spending a large chunk of his personal time trying to find out anything he could as well, and Mulder had the distinct impression it was putting a strain on his marriage now.

            Speaking of strains on marriages, his own relationship with Dana hadn’t been so hot lately either. The distance between them had been growing exponentially ever since Billy had disappeared from the park, and they were beginning to argue more lately too. Mulder knew that such things had a tendency to pull people apart, but he had always felt that he and Dana were drawn closer together by William, regardless of the circumstances. Apparently that wasn’t the case this time though. They barely spoke any more, never confided their feelings to one another at all. The only time they seemed to talk it was to discuss any information or leads they might have, and even that was in woefully short supply. Any other interaction between them seemed to always end in an argument or outright fight. Mulder’s study seemed to have become a second bedroom for him, as lately he’d been spending just as much time sleeping on the small couch in there as he was sleeping in the bedroom he and Dana shared.

            Brooding, Mulder scrolled absently through a website. It was basically an on-line version of the trashy tabloid magazines that were popular in the checkout lines of grocery stores. He had learned during his years working in the X-Files Department at the FBI that if the government wanted to discredit something, it got buried in the tabloids, and they had been attempting to cover up and bury the kidnapping for months now.

            As he rolled down the page of the website, a tiny article caught his eye. Strange lights seen in the mountains of France. Mulder clicked on the link and read through the short story quickly. Unusual light displays had been noted high in the French Alps over a period of several days. The phenomena appeared to center over a tiny mountain village, and the gist of the article was that the lights had coincided with the visit of a toy store Santa and could this indicate that it was the real Santa Claus visiting the town? Even Mulder smirked in amusement at this particular premise. At the end of the article was a blurry and very low quality scan of an instant camera photo. It was a shot of the Santa Claus surrounded by several children. It was next to impossible to make out anything apart from colors in the photo; the faces were too blurred and distorted to be useful. But Mulder stared at the picture anyway, studying it. He had a gut feeling there was something important here.

            Mulder’s eyes passed slowly and carefully over each little face. There really wasn’t anything to make out. Not with the quality of the picture. So he saved the image to his computer and began to play with it, to see if he could clean up and sharpen the image.

* * *

 

            “You are not concentrating, boy.”

            William stood up again, wiping the back of his hand across his mouth as he did so. He barely noticed the blood drying on his hand from his split lip. The cut would be fine in a few moments anyway. What didn’t heal so quickly was his pride and dignity. He resumed his defensive stance and waited for his cousin Victor to attack again. Henri watched from the sidelines of the small square where he taught them to grapple and fight in enclosed spaces. It had been his icy voice that had cut through the last bout that William had completely failed in.

            Victor shifted weight slowly from foot to foot, circling William like a cat might circle a mouse or spider. His oily black hair was pulled back tightly in a ponytail, and for once he was smiling. It was a gruesome sight, that smile. It was cold, cruel, and gloating. He lunged towards William, missing him on purpose, and easily dodging William’s return blow. Though Victor could finish Will easily, and normally in fights did his best to end them quickly and efficiently like he was trained to, he preferred to play with William. Wear him down, get as many blows in as possible. Damage his pride as much as he could, prove how much greater he was, how much more skilled. Victor hated his cousin. His next strike missed, as did William’s, and then he landed a hard elbow blow to William’s ribs, a flat side hand strike up the side of William’s head, and a punch straight into his stomach.

            William dropped to his knees and doubled over, gasping harshly for breath. The last strike had knocked all the wind out of him. His stomach ached, and tears ran down his face in streams from the strike to his head. He hadn’t managed to lay a single blow on Victor at all today. He gritted his teeth and started to stand, but Victor was waiting with a dropping elbow strike to the back of William’s head. He fell face down on the ground, arms sprawled.

            Henri stopped the fight again. Victor fell back to the sideline, smirking broadly. Henri grabbed the back of William’s shirt and hoisted him onto his feet. His eyes burned furiously.

            “Alright boy, what’s your issue today?” he asked, his voice quiet and low, menacing. “Victor might be better than you, but you and I both know you can hold your own against him better than the disgusting display you’ve shown today. Now what’s the problem? Speak up!” he barked.

            William stood at attention. “Yes Sir. I, I’ve just been thinking about, a lot of things, and not the task at hand.” He told his uncle, eyes down cast.

            “You look me in the eye when we’re speaking, boy.” Henri rumbled. “And what does a little boy have to think about that is more important than learning how to defend himself and make himself useful? Hm?”

            William forced himself to look his uncle in the eyes. “M-my parents. And did Grandfather get revenge for their murders yet, or are my birth parents still free? And why hasn’t Grandfather called, or visited? It’s been 6 months, and he promised…”

            Henri St. Claire’s dreadful eyes narrowed, and he stooped down to William’s level, putting his face into the child’s. He didn’t raise his voice; he didn’t need to.

            “Let me make something clear to you here, boy: You don’t have any parents. None of you do. You know what you were told, told all along. All you’ve ever had is Keepers, and what you have now are Trainers. I don’t give a damn what kind of nonsense Samantha’s been filling your head with about Aunts and Uncles and Grandparents. You were created for a purpose, and you are being trained for that purpose now. Nothing else, no one else, matters a lick. You understanding me, boy?”

            William resisted the urge to lick his lips, look at his feet, or nod his head. “Yes Sir.” He said quietly.

            “Good. Now, your so called ‘Grandfather’ is a very sick man, and you know that. He keeps tabs on you and the others, and when he can be here, he will be. I had better not hear another word about any parents, or that someone hasn’t been calling or visiting, and you damn well better pay attention to what you are being taught at any given moment and what you are being told to do. Is that clear to you boy?”

            “Yes Sir.” William answered.

            Henri stood and straightened up. “Alright then, boy, get back in there with Victor, and I better see some improvement this time, or I’ll get in there with you myself and I guarantee you that’ll be a hell of a lot harder. Go!”

            “Yes Sir.” William said, and saluted before turning back to meet Victor as he walked back into the square.

            Victor sauntered back over, slowly and lazily, the nasty little smirk still on his face. It was immediately obvious that he was no longer playing with William, but going in for the kill. He stepped forward, feinted, and threw a roundhouse kick to William’s head. He caught him up the entire side of his face with the blade of his foot and sent him crashing towards the ground.

            As Victor kicked, William envisioned that it was no longer his cousin standing there, but his Father. Mulder. He put his hands out and as they hit the ground he pushed himself up and swung his legs out, sweeping a stunned Victor straight off his feet.

Victor’s feet flew out from under them and he hit the ground on his back, slamming his head into the hard packed earth.

William landed in a crouch and immediately launched himself at Victor. He went for every pressure point he could find. Solar Plexus, throat, head, stomach, kidneys; he peppered the older boy with a series of attacks until Henri called the fight off. William sprang away from his cousin as soon as Henri called the end.

For once, Henri was smiling. “Very good, William.”

* * *

 

            Scully arrived home in an irritable mood. Day after day, nothing. No one had ever seen anything, there were no real leads at all. They hadn’t been able to discover anyone fitting his description leaving the D.C. area by car, plane, train, nothing. Not at all. Any of the leads they had uncovered had been mistakes. Even the horribly scarred Cancer Man had not been seen by anyone except for Scully in the back of the van. Worst of all, Dana couldn’t shake the depressing idea that they had simply killed him and destroyed all evidence when they realized Jeffrey Spender had equalized his biology and made him useless to the aliens and the syndicate.

            She was surprised to find Mulder in apparently high spirits. He flashed her a familiar little grin as she walked in the door. She couldn’t even bring herself to make an effort to return the smile.

            “I think I might have finally found a lead, Scully!” he told her rapturously. “Come here, look at the picture I found.”

            Dana followed him back to his office, her heart beginning to pound in her chest. “What is it Mulder? Where did you find it? _How_ did you find it?” she asked him. He ignored her questions and just waved her into the room and over to his computer.

            Mulder sat down at the desk and pulled up the website. “I found this as the raw picture, and I just felt like there was something there, so I started to play around with it, enhance it.”

            As Mulder started to pull up the enhanced picture, Scully felt her heart start to drop. This was all over a hunch he had? She inspected the original photograph closely. There was nothing there that even suggested the age or gender of the people. She could make an educated guess, but that was as good as it got, and that was basically nothing.

            “Here, this was the best I could get it to. Look, here, at the little boy sitting on Santa’s lap.” Mulder said, tapping the screen. “It looks like him, doesn’t it? William?”

            Scully looked over the picture, studied the little boy Mulder had pointed out closely. It was a much better quality than the original, but the faces were still tiny and the picture was fuzzy. It could have been William, but you couldn’t see the picture well enough to say it looked like him anymore than most other little auburn haired boys. The hope that had been rising in her began to flutter away. “Mulder… It’s not clear enough. You can’t tell anything by this picture.”

            “I know the picture by itself isn’t very good, but I ran it through the facial recognition program. It hit on 8 out of the 12 points!” His tone was still happy and enthusiastic.

            Dana’s patience was quickly being spent, and she struggled to keep her tone in check. “Mulder, 4 to 6 point matches are average for individuals of the same ethnic background. If you are identifying someone who actually resembles the target, 7 or 8 point matches wouldn’t be unusual, maybe not even 9 point matches.”

            Mulder’s disappointment was palpable. “I know it isn’t the best it could be, but it’s something at least, more than what we’ve had. I think it’s worth looking into, at least.”

            Scully sighed. “It is worth looking into, Mulder, I just wouldn’t exactly call it a ‘lead’ yet, and I wouldn’t get your hopes up too high.” She took the comparison results he’d pulled out from him and looked over them. Nothing jumped out at her. “Where’d you find the picture?” she asked him.

            Mulder pulled up the website again. “A story on here caught my eye, and when I read it the picture was at the bottom. It was taken in a village in the French Alps. Aurore.”

            Scully scanned the article and immediately felt her stomach clench in anger. Everything she had been holding in, the anger and fury, the guilt, the shame, the utter defeat and hopelessness suddenly couldn’t be contained anymore, and she lashed out at him in her pain and fury.

            “So that’s what this is all about?” she asked, her lips tight, her eyes narrowed and cold, her voice like ice. “Strange lights in the sky. That’s what this is all about. You want to go chase down a ghost lead halfway across the world, and now I know why. It all goes back to chasing down your little green men, doesn’t it Mulder? That’s where it always goes back to, where it will always go. Not even finding your son is more important than your damn aliens!” Her voice rose to an angry wavering shout that ended in a few moments of stunned absolute silence.

            Mulder’s mouth dropped in a look of pure horror. “What? Scully, no, that, that isn’t it at all.” He groped helplessly, not even able to really comprehend the cruel accusation. “That story isn’t even about aliens, didn’t you read it? They were saying the lights meant the toy store Santa was real-How could you say that I don’t care about finding William?” he asked suddenly, quietly, as it began to sink in. “How could you even think that?”

            Scully didn’t back down this time, didn’t avert her eyes in shame. She was hurting too much to spare his feelings now, and she wanted to hurt him. “Because it’s the truth Mulder.” She snapped at him, her voice a snarl. “It’s always been the truth. You don’t care about William, you don’t care about finding him. All you care about is proving to the world that you’re not crazy and that you’ve been right all along, no matter who gets pushed aside or trampled along the way.” Dana glared at him furiously and lowered her voice to barely above a whisper. The words were choppy but pointed. “My son is _not_ going to be one of the people you run over. You chase your aliens; _I’m finding my son_!”

            Mulder stared at her. “Scully…” he said softly, hurt and confusion in his face. But only her burning rage looked back at him, no remorse or regret there, nothing relenting. He turned and walked out of the room, put on his jacket. She watched him from the doorway of the study. He paused with the front door open and looked back at her. “I love him. I love you and William both, and I’m going to bring him home. It’s all I want, finding our son. Nothing else means anything to me.” She didn’t answer him, and he turned and walked out the door and into the snow.

            Scully walked down the hall and stood looking out the window. She watched him pull out of the driveway and kept looking until his tail lights disappeared down the street. She sat on the couch, and the silence of the house swelled and engulfed her. She had never felt more empty and alone in her life. She curled up into the corner of the couch, buried her face in her arms, and cried. She continued to sob for a long time after she had fallen asleep. Outside, the snow continued to fall.


	11. Chapter 11

Mulder drove through the snowy streets in silence. The snow wasn’t bad enough to need plowing anymore, but it was stacked on the sides of the road in slushy gray piles. He still couldn’t believe the fight with Scully. Sighing, he glanced down at the clock in the car. It was 2:54 in the morning. He needed to find somewhere to sleep. Luckily, that wasn’t much of a problem now that he’d driven closer to the coast.

            A shabby motel just up the road on the left looked good enough and he took it. He was almost regretful when it took ten minutes to get the door key to work, but it wasn’t until he got into the room and discovered the TV didn’t work that he officially regretted his decision. 

            Sighing, Mulder lay down on the bed and stared at the dark ceiling. Old memories drifted back to him, of being on the road as an FBI Agent, Scully in her room usually next door to his own. It never failed that she would come over to his room, or he would go to hers, and they would share pizza and discuss not only the case they’d be working on but other cases as well, and then it became discussing their personal life, and than those personal lives and become more and more intertwined.

            Mulder blinked back tears and decided he should have just slept in the car. It wouldn’t have been all that much more uncomfortable than the hotel bed, certainly no less boring, and at least it wouldn’t have brought up so many memories. But then again, maybe it would have. He and Scully had spent enough time in cars together, driving to investigate cases and on stakeouts.

            Mulder sighed again and sat up on the side of the bed. He looked at the watch he’d sat on the table next to the bed. 4:17 AM. That made it 10:17 in France. Mulder hesitated for scarcely a moment. No matter what Scully thought, it was the only lead they had to go on. He dialed the cell phone. “This is Fox Mulder, United States. I need to be put through to Senator Didier St. Charles.”

* * *

 

            William stood in line at attention. His face was impassive, but inside he was seething with excitement. His Grandfather was finally coming to visit! To his right Joy stood at attention, staring straight ahead and standing tall. To his left Amy stood, looking around and fidgeting. Henri stood at the beginning of the line, his face neutral, but his eyes glinted with anger that was clear and obvious to all of the children. Samantha stood beside him, looking nervous and on the verge of tears. She’d been looking that way ever since they’d gotten news of the surprise visit. William couldn’t understand it, why she wasn’t happy and excited to see her Father. As delighted as he was to see his grandfather, he was also nervous. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was very wrong, and a scent of danger hung in the air like the smoke from a wildfire.

            At the beginning of the line with Henri and Samantha the Cancer Man sat in his wheel chair. Still looking very feeble and sickly, he looked significantly better than when William had last seen him. Another man stood beside them, older even than CGB Spender, but in better physical condition. His hair was snow white but he still had a reasonable build and stood without a stoop, and his movements were relatively easy and unpained. While the children stood at attention the three men spoke together quietly, before beginning to move slowly down the line, inspecting each child closely as they went.

            To William it seemed like it took forever for them to reach him. He expected his Grandfather to greet him, but he didn’t even register any difference towards him in the old man’s eyes than he’d shown to any of the others. William went through the rigmarole, striking different poses and answering questions. He knew better than to ask any questions of his own, his Uncle had him well conditioned as far as that was concerned. When the men were satisfied they moved along. William stood at attention, but his insides were like ice. How could his Grandfather behave as though he didn’t know him, like he was no different than any of the others? Wasn’t he excited and happy to see him? Had he done something wrong?

* * *

 

            Dana Scully’s eyes were sore and puffy, the result of spending the night in tears. They had finally dried sometime around dawn, but that was only because she didn’t think she had any moisture left in them. She couldn’t recall ever having felt so empty, so utterly alone.

            The phone went to voicemail for the 9th time in a row and she finally decided to leave a message. “Mulder, it’s me. Please, just call me back. Tell me where you are?” She listened to the empty air for another few seconds before hitting the end button. Fresh tears threatened again. What had she managed to do this time?

            She could remember the night before clearly, much more clearly than she would have liked to. She remembered every word she had spoken, remembered the look of hurt and shock on Mulder’s face. She remembered the look of utter betrayal he had worn. She remembered him walking out the door, walking away from her, and driving away into the snow.

            Dana swallowed and her dry throat ached from the effort. She couldn’t blame him if he never spoke to her again, but it was driving her crazy not knowing that he was okay. He’d gone out into the snow, and he’d been upset, very upset, and she knew very well how he drove when he was upset.

            Dana stood looking out the picture window again, and abruptly spun away from it. The house was making her feel claustrophobic, it was too confined. She needed to get away, to get out, to try and clear her head somehow before she went completely insane. And there was only one place she could think of where she could go and someone would listen to her.

* * *

 

            William stood with his ear pressed against the closed door, listening intently. Henri, Samantha, his Grandfather, and the other man had gone into the study after they had inspected the children, and William was desperate to know what they were talking about.

            “-only a baby! She’s barely three, she hasn’t had time to develop yet, to learn! They were all older than she was!” Samantha’s tearful voice was high and indignant. William recognized the tone as being a fearful one. He couldn’t make out most of the replies from his Grandfather or the other older man, they spoke too softly to hear through the door. All he could tell was that Samantha was upset and afraid, and it had something to do with Amy from the sounds of the conversation. Across the room Joy was looking out for Ellis or Victor to be coming to look for them.

            William licked his lips and straightened up, straining to hear as Henri spoke. His voice was low, but William was used to listening intently to it.

            “-should have been expecting this day, Samantha. You’ve known all along like the rest of us that Amy was a failed experiment. “

            “She’s not just an ‘experiment’, she’s our daughter!” Samantha’s voice rose up resentfully. “And she isn’t a failure either, she just needs more time! It will take over in time, and she’ll be just as good as any of the others.” Samantha insisted.

            William pressed his ear as tightly as he could against the wooden door, but he couldn’t make out the whispery reply. Samantha’s voice exploded loudly from the room immediately in response though.

            “I am NOT in denial! You’re all being too quick to judge her! She just needs more time, the same as every one of the others has gotten!”

            William’s pulse was quickening. What exactly did the men want to do with Amy? What experiment had she failed? He knew she wasn’t exactly like the rest of them, and that the other children tended to ignore her entirely as though they easily forgot she existed, but he didn’t understand what kind of test or experiment she had failed at. Was she supposed to be the same as the rest of them were?

            William again couldn’t make out the whispering response from his Grandfather, but it apparently appeased his aunt. When she spoke again her voice was much lower and calmer.

            “Yes Daddy, I understand. She will, I promise, you’ll see. Thank you Daddy, so much, I won’t let you down. “

            The sound of chairs scraping back and a flurry of movement signaled William and Joy to make haste. As they hurried back down the hall William filled her in on everything he had heard.

            “What do you think it means?” he asked her, and to his surprise she had an answer immediately.

            “Amy was supposed to be one of us. Two human parents, but half alien. Something with her got messed up though, so she only has one human parent, Samantha. She has half Samantha’s DNA and half of the Alien DNA. It must be why she doesn’t have the abilities like us.” Joy whispered to him. She connected the pieces much more quickly than he did, having been more receptive to her powers from the beginning. “I guess they were hoping she’d develop powers, but it’s not working.”

            “What are they going to do to her? Is there some way they can fix her?” William asked. He’d become rather fond of his younger cousin, something that had served to endear him to Samantha. He was the only one of the children who had any time at all for Amy. The rest of them made it perfectly clear that they downright resented her.

            Joy shrugged in response. “I don’t know, probably not. She’s just a mistake, usually when it gets messed up like that they just use the babies for tests and experiments. Samantha’s probably the only reason she’s still around.” Joy answered him carelessly, and William could only stare in horror as it dawned on him what they were probably planning to do with his baby cousin.

            “No, that, that can’t be right.” He finally stammered. “Not with Amy at least, our, our Grandfather wouldn’t let that happen, he cares about us.” William insisted, doubt creeping into his voice. Joy gave him a sidelong look.

            “Well, I wouldn’t worry about it, anyways. You’re probably right.” But William couldn’t shake the icy feeling of dread building in the pit of his stomach.

* * *

 

            When Mulder went home and found Dana’s car gone, he had a pretty good idea of where he would find her. He knew where she went when she wanted to be alone and think. Normally he left her alone, but today he didn’t have time.

            As soon as he pulled into the cemetery he knew she was there. He could see her car parked on the shoulder. He pulled up behind it and sat in the car watching her for a few moments.

            She knelt on the ground between her sister Melissa’s grave and her daughter Emily Sim’s grave. On the other side of Melissa Scully was their Father. Mulder watched as she stood and moved back and forth between the graves. Each had a new bouquet of flowers placed on them.

            He got out of the car and walked towards her in silence. He knew she could hear him by the way she stopped walking back and forth and held herself perfectly still, not turning around. He stood behind her in silence for a few moments before he could finally bring himself to speak.

            “Dana.” He whispered softly, reaching out and touching her shoulder. She spun around immediately and fell into his arms, still refusing to look at him.

            Dana held him tightly, taking in his familiar scent, his familiar touch, and felt the tears begin to flow again.

            “Mulder.” She whispered against him. “Mulder, I’m so sorry. Please, forgive me. I didn’t mean anything I said to you last night, I don’t why I said it, I-“ she broke off, not knowing how to continue, still not able to look at him.

            Mulder held her tight against him. “Shhhh, don’t worry about it. We’re both under an incredible amount of stress.” He pulled her away from him and held her face gently in his hands, looking into her beautiful blue eyes and forcing her to look into his. “Besides, I have much more forgiveness to ask you for than you do me.” He kissed her lips softly.

            Dana smiled at him. “I love you.” It came out sounding tiny and almost afraid, and Mulder responded with another, deeper kiss. “Me, too.”

            Scully said her farewells and she and Mulder walked back towards the cars hand in hand. “I looked over what you found again Mulder. It’s a long shot, but you’re right. We haven’t had anything better to look into. It’s worth a shot.”

            Mulder gave her a cryptic half smile. “Well I’m glad you agree. We’ve got a private plane to France, leaving this afternoon, courtesy of my, friend, in the French Senate.”

* * *

 

            In her study at home Monica Reyes stared intently at the computer screen in front of her. She’d been spending the last several weeks attempting to crack a complicated set of encrypted files John had uncovered at the FBI that possibly pertained to William. What she was looking at now was beyond her wildest dreams of what could be going on, beyond what any of them had imagined. She stood up and moved a few feet slowly towards the door. “John!” she called, not taking her eyes off the computer screen. “John! John hurry, come here, you have to see this! I think I found him!”


	12. Chapter 12

Scully sat in relative silence on the small private jet, Mulder in the seat across from her. Both were lost deep in thought, going over the last several hours in their heads. They had pulled up to their house to find John, Monica, and Skinner waiting for them. Monica had been holding a small folder tight to her chest, and the trio had looked extremely nervous. John was to the point as she and Mulder walked up to them.

            “We think we found him.” John had said without hesitation, and suddenly the world had been upside down…

* * *

 

            John, Monica, Dana, Mulder, and Skinner sat crowded around the Mulder’s coffee table, the contents of the file spread out. There wasn’t a lot there, but what was there spoke volumes.

            “It took me three weeks to crack the code encrypting this information.” Monica explained. “There are a lot more details in the files; names, specific dates, access to photographs, specific locations, contact details; but it all uses different codes and encrpytions. I’ve isolated at least 30 separate ciphers so far that have been used.”

            “What information did you manage to get that makes you think you know where he is?” Mulder asked, scanning through the documents.

            “It’s mostly a suggestion here and there, reading between the lines.” Skinner broke in. He had a relatively sour look on his face. It had been clear from the beginning that he felt it was too soon to bring the information to Mulder and Scully’s attention. “It’s all inference at this point, really.”

            “No, it’s not conclusive at all at this point.” John interjected. “But what Monica did find was that there are groups of children being collected in isolated locations all across the world. Increases in paranormal phenomena and alien sightings seem to have a tendency to correlate with where these groups are located, from what Monica has been able to gather.”

            Scully and Mulder exchanged a knowing look, their minds going to the report from the computer. An isolated town in the French Alps with associated phenomena…           

“So you think William is in one of these groups?” Scully asked, and Monica nodded. “But how are we supposed to know which one? And how do we know where, if you haven’t uncovered any locations?”

            “I have some of the locations uncovered. Two are in Africa, one is in Vermont, another in Southern California. There appears to be several located across Western Europe.” Monica looked up with a sparkle in her eye. “The main reason we think we found William though, is I deciphered the logs of children entering and leaving groups. In the last 8 months there has been only one instance of a child entering a group. It would have to be William.”

            “However, there isn’t much evidence, no concrete evidence at all, to suggest that William has anything at all to do with these groups.” Skinner said abruptly. “It’s a complete assumption, and without it this whole idea loses a lot of its steam.”

            Scully looked at Monica. “Is there anything at all that would suggest William is involved with these groups?”

            “We haven’t been able to decode enough yet, but there are many partial decipherings that involve Alien Hybrids, suggestions of invasions and take-overs, certain abilities that seem to be associated with the children, such as telekinesis…” John trailed off. They all knew it sounded like William.

            “Do you have any idea where the child was placed?” Mulder asked, and Monica bit her lip.

            “No, not yet I mean.” She admitted. “From the information I have, we can tell when the last child entered into their system, but not where he was placed. But, I’m working on it. We’ll figure out where exactly he is.”

            Dana broke in. “We already know.” She said, locking eyes with Mulder, and surprising him and all the others. “There’s a group in the Alps, isn’t there?”

            Monica looked at her for a moment, confused, than shuffled through the papers. “I-yes, yes there is.” She looked up at her friend, confused. “How did you know-?” She looked down again. “I mean, it’s not specific, we aren’t sure what country, but there is a very high probability of a group being placed in the general area…”

            Dana didn’t answer her; instead she stood and walked over to Mulder, took his face in her hands, and kissed him in front of all of them. The PDA was so out of character that Mulder couldn’t even return the kiss at first he was so shocked.

            “I’m so sorry Mulder, for everything.” she whispered when they broke apart. “After all this time, I should have learned to just trust your hunches.” Then she turned back to their friends.

            “Mulder found a picture on a website yesterday. There is a boy in the French Alps, a place called Aurore, who looks very much like William. There were mysterious lights associated with him, and in the picture he is with a small group of other children.” Dana looked down. “I gave Mulder a hard time about it, that he was just chasing his aliens, didn’t care about me or William. I was wrong.” She looked up again. “The boy in that picture is William. It just, makes sense somehow.”

            There was a general silence amongst the group. Skinner was the one who broke it. “It’s, worth looking into, if nothing else.” Mulder raised an eyebrow. It wasn’t the kind of long shot Skinner normally endorsed, and not what he was expecting after his previous comments. The skin-man shrugged at the look. “We all know you two are going insane here with nothing you can do. The best thing for you both would probably be to get out into the field somehow. Feel useful again.”

            Dana was the first one to speak up. “You’re absolutely right. Mulder and I are going stir crazy here, I’ve been at his throat for weeks.” She shot Mulder another apologetic look. “And even if this turns out to be a dead end, it’s still better than just sitting here doing absolutely nothing.”

* * *

 

            …And here they were, less than three hours later, on their way to France. Mulder’s contact would be waiting at the airport for them when they arrived. According to Mulder the man had been enthusiastic about helping them. Dana stirred uneasily in her seat, and leaned back with eyes closed. It made her nervous that Mulder’s contact was so eager to help. Her time in the FBI had taught her to be mistrustful of everyone. She fell into a restless sleep, and dreamt of a small red haired boy with Mulder’s eyes and smile.

* * *

 

            William St. Charles sat on the floor in the den, bored. Around him random objects floated about lazily. He was supposed to be practicing his abilities, but he wasn’t in the mood to concentrate, so merely orbited the small objects around him. A pencil, a paper clip, some small action figures, a marble.

            Frustration filled the child. His Grandfather had left early that morning. He hadn’t spoken a single word to William in private, had not given him an acknowledging look, a single smile. The little boy didn’t understand. What had he done wrong? Why had his Grandfather changed towards him so much?

            The objects circling William zoomed faster and faster, their courses becoming more erratic as his thoughts became more turbulent. His Grandfather hadn’t been lying to him, he’d used his ability, had used The Knowing, when he had first met his Grandfather. He’d have known if he was lying. So something had to have happened between then and now. He just had no idea what it could be.

            He had come here to France with his Aunt and Uncle. He was diligent about his studies, about learning to fight. He had even come to agree to use his abilities and develop them and make them stronger. He had even agreed to help the beings who came in the help with their plans at his Uncle’s insistance. What could he have possibly done wrong that made his Grandfather angry?

            The zipping objects dropped to the ground instantly when the door opened and William snapped his head around. Samantha stood in the doorway holding Amy on her hip. They both wore their parkas, mittens, and hats. In Samantha’s hand was William’s coat. He sensed in her a new resignation replacing the old fear he’d been feeling ever since his Grandfather and the other man had come to visit. Her voice came out in a soft whisper. “Willy, I have to talk to you. It’s important.”

* * *

 

            Didier St. Charles waited at the runway, checking his watch impatiently. The plane was only 10 minutes overdue, but it made him anxious considering the circumstances. He smiled in relief when he heard the descent announced.

            Though he had never met either Fox Mulder or Dana Scully, he recognized them immediately as they stepped off the plan. Since Mulder had contacted him the day before requesting his assistance he had found out as much about them as he could. He had been a fan for far longer though, since their days working the X-Files when he and Mulder had crossed paths via their similar interests.

            “Mulder! Scully!” he greeted them warmly, smiling. “Welcome to France!” He shook both of their hands. “Though I do wish it were under better circumstances, I hope you enjoy your stay, and I certainly hope you find what you are looking for.” His voice was sincere, his English impeccable, carrying only a slight trace of an accent.

            Mulder nodded, smiling slightly. “Thank you. We certainly hope for the same.”

            Dana was more to the point. “Mulder said you can help us find our son?”

            Didier nodded. “Yes, Madame, I believe I can.” He looked around before continuing in a quieter voice. “If you both would accompany me to my office, where we may speak in private?”

* * *

 

            Samantha’s breath was only slightly quicker than normal as she put William and Amy’s boots on them. Now that she had decided to act, there could be no going back. Even if she changed her mind, something she would NEVER do, Henri would be able to tell and she would be as good as dead. She needed to get them out of there, and she needed to be gone like 10 minutes ago.

            “We’re just going to go away for awhile, just the three of us, okay? Doesn’t that sound like fun?” she asked the two small children, forcing a comforting smile onto her face.

            “Like going on a trip, Mommy?” Amy asked her in her high little girl’s voice, and Samantha’s heart melted. Her resolve strengthened a thousand-fold again.

            “Yes Baby, exactly! We’re going on a trip, a very special trip, just me you and William.”

            William was still frowning uncertainly. “Where are we going Aunt Samantha?” he asked. “What about Uncle Henri, and the others?”

            Samantha glanced around nervously. “I don’t know yet William honey, I thought we’d decide once we were on the road.” Samantha forced herself to smile. “And I think everyone will be just fine without us.”

            Samantha picked Amy up and held her hand out to William. “Come on Buddy, let’s get moving, we don’t want it to get too much later.”

            William reached for her hand and followed her out of the mountain home.

* * *

 

            Mulder and Scully found themselves sitting in comfortable cushioned chairs in the Senator’s office, drinking coffee. It was 4:30 in the morning in France. On the desk in front of them was a relatively thin file. Senator Saint Charles sat on the other side of the desk.

            “My son was four years old when he disappeared from the beach in Sete in 1972.” He began without fanfare. He had told the story many times before, and it was almost starting to sound by rote to him. He handed them a picture frame off his desk.

            Dana studied the picture. It showed a much younger version of the senator, hair still thick and brown instead of its current thinning gray-white, in a blue swimsuit. Beside him stood a very beautiful young blonde woman in a bathing suit. Standing between them was a handsome little blonde boy with an infectious smile.

            “My ex-wife and our son, Henri-Michel.” Senator St. Charles informed Scully and Mulder as they inspected the picture. “It was taken less than an hour before he disappeared.”

            Mulder looked up. “What happened?” he asked. He had known Didier had lost someone close to him under mysterious circumstances, they had begun talking over it in fact, but he had never heard the entire story before now.

            “I married my wife Cerise in 1967, and our son was born the next year. It was a marriage of convenience, political. Cerise and I were amicable and respected one another, but that was the main extent of the relationship. When Henri-Michel was born, things began to change. Cerise lost her interest in politics, and the arrangement of our marriage was no longer enough. Our son was her whole world, and she decided that having parents who were only together for politics wasn’t a good environment to raise a child in. At the time I was on the fast track with my political career. The trip to Sete was our first vacation since our Honeymoon. It was my final attempt to save my marriage.”

            Mulder and Scully listened intently as the senator spoke. Scully understood now why the man would be so enthusiastic to help them. He understand the pain of having a child disappear.

            “The trip was wonderful at first. Cerise and I were truly enjoying one another, and I was spending time with my son that I had never gotten before. The third day we were there, I was teaching Henri-Michel how to swim. He was a natural, superb for a 4 year old boy who had never been in the ocean before.” Didier St. Charle’s eyes shined with nostalgia.

“I was the one who let him run back to his Mother. She was about 6 yards behind us. The beach was crowded, but not terribly so, and she was so close…” the man trailed off, and suddenly looked fifteen years older. “We were both looking at him. He just disappeared. He ran into a small group of people and was just gone. Vanished into thin air and left no trace behind. Cerise and I looked for hours. The police were called in. I used my connections to get publicity and have the government and military get involved. In almost 40 years, there has never been any sign of my son ever found.”

Mulder and Scully sat in stunned, and terrified, silence. Would that be their fate with William, to hunt him for the rest of their lives and always come up empty handed?

            “Cerise and I divorced in 1984, twelve years after Henri-Michel disappeared. It was finalized on what would have been the day before his 16th birthday. She lives in a beach house in Sete I had built for her.” Didier’s eyes were very sad. “She never got past what happened with Henri-Michel in any way. She sits and talks to him, and at the same time she always watches over the beach, waiting for him to come back. Before we divorced and she moved there she was institutionalized several times due to stress from Henri’s disappearance. “

Didier stood up and began to pace the room. “I have never stopped trying to find out what happened to my son. My political career was launched by the publicity from Henri-Michel’s disappearance, as well as the sympathy. However, my experience with Henri led me to delve into mysterious disappearances, which led me not only to meeting you, Mr. Mulder, but to other types and cases of unexplained phenomena.  I never found any trace of my son, but I do now have a fairly large database of other unsolved and solved phenomena.” Senator St. Charles pulled a map out.

“Aurore is very isolated, about a 4 hour drive from here. However, with the information you gave me yesterday Mr. Mulder, I was able to get the address for a family living on the outskirts of Aurore. A man, his wife, and several children, most adopted.”

Scully felt her heart beginning to race. She had expected a long drawn-out search here, but this man was apparently leading them straight to William.

Didier handed a paper to Mulder. “Here, Mr. Mulder, is the address. There is a government issued car at your service downstairs, and any other help I can provide for you, consider it done. I may not be able to bring my son home, but I will do whatever I can to make sure no one else has to go through what Cerise and I have.”

* * *

 

Samantha slipped quietly through the snow, keeping her eyes open for any of the other children. It broke her heart to leave them, especially Victor. Thinking of her son sent a stab through her chest. She remembered bringing him home, her oldest, remembered him as a little boy. But the training and conditioning had changed him, and now there was no way she could take him with her. He’d be the first to turn them in, and he’d hurt her, William and Amy without a second thought. She had no choice but to abandon her first born in older to save her youngest. As for William… He reminded her of the boy in her borrowed memories, the memories that had belonged to her Mother. Her brother, Fox. She couldn’t leave him here, with these monsters who would heartlessly kill a sweet little girl like Amy. If he were to ever disobey them he could be in as much danger as Amy was now. She had to take him too. There was something different about him than the rest.

“Aunt Samantha, are we going to see Grandfather?” William asked as Samantha strapped Amy into her car seat. Perhaps this was why he had been so distant, because he knew they were coming to see him soon.

Samantha dropped onto one knee in front of William. “Honey, we aren’t going to see him anymore.” She said softly.

William stared at her. “What? Why not? You promised, when I came here, you all promised I would still see and talk to Grandfather!”

Samantha shook her head. “I know, Willy, I’m sorry! But he’s not who you think he is, none of them are. They just want to use you for the powers you have, to further their own causes.”

William stepped back from her, shaking his head. “No. No, that’s not true, Grandfather loves me, he loves us.” William’s eyes were large and fearful. “I would have known if he was lying to me…”

“He tricked you William, he knows how to fool your abilities, he’s worked with a lot of kids with powers like yours.” Samantha said desperately, reaching out for him, berating herself for not waiting to have the conversation until they were on the road. She stood up and caught his arm.

“William, we need to get out of here. They want to hurt Amy now, because she doesn’t have the powers like you and the others. If we don’t leave, they are going to take her away.” Samantha told him, her desperation rising.

William stared, chest beginning to heave. He felt like a caged animal. He shook his head at Samantha even though he could feel the truth in her words. “No… He loves us, Grandfather loves us, family means more to him than anything.”

“William it’s all lies! He doesn’t care about any of us, he just wants to use us.” She could see she was losing him. “William, he, he’s one of the men who had your adopted parents killed!”

“NO!” William screamed at the top of his lungs. A stunned Samantha let go of his arm and he bolted away from her, away from the cabin, and off into the mountain forest. Samantha grabbed Amy out of the car and ran after him, calling his name.


	13. Chapter 13

William raced through the snowy woods, desperate to put as much distance as he could between himself and Samantha. He could hear her calling his name behind him, her voice growing fainter and fainter as he outpaced her. It couldn’t be true, the things she had said about his Grandfather… But he had felt the truth in all of her words, and in his Grandfather’s actions towards him. But he had also felt the truth in his Grandfather’s words all those months before. How could he and Samantha both be telling the truth? In his grief and pain, William was like a beacon, his mind inadvertently screaming to the other hybrids the things Samantha had told him, and what her plans were. Henri and the others looked up from the separate things they were doing as one and began to move.

 

Mulder and Scully drove up the mountainside in silence. A gentle snow was beginning to fall. They were close to the cabin in the mountains now, already inside the town of Aurore. Both of their nerves were shot, and a tumult of questions raced through their minds. Would William really be there? What kind of resistance would they be met with? Didier St. Charles had arranged for backup to be at their disposal, but they were going in alone at first. They’d been afraid that taking a squad of military men in might be dangerous to William. 

 

Samantha panted, spinning in a circle desperately. Night was falling quickly around her, and the snow was picking up. “William!” she called once more, her voice faltering. He could be anywhere now. She shifted Amy to her other hip and the little girl squirmed slightly.  
“Mommy, I’m cold.” She whimpered pathetically and laid her head on Samantha’s shoulder. Samantha hadn’t dressed her to be out in the snow for hours, only for a car ride.  
“I know baby, I’m sorry.” Samantha said, hugging the girl close. Samantha knew that Henri, Victor, and the others must already know. She’d been a fool, should have realized what William’s reaction would be, but she was so used to the clinical hybrids, and William’s reaction was so much more, human. Samantha looked back towards the cabin. She knew she would never find William out here now, only freeze herself and Amy to death as well. Maybe, if they were following William, she would be able to get around them if she backtracked carefully… Samantha shifted Amy’s weight again and began to carefully head back towards the cabin.

 

It was dark when Mulder and Scully pulled into the driveway of the cabin. A red SUV parked in the driveway was illuminated in their headlights when they pulled up. One of the back doors was hanging wide open. The hood was up, and it looked like a small bomb had gone off inside the engine. Metal was peeled back in a stiff spray, and it was quite clear the vehicle could never go anywhere anytime soon. What Mulder and Scully didn’t know was that Henri had done the damage with his bare hands as he left the cabin to look for William, Samantha, and Amy. Also illuminated in the lights was a woman, holding a small child. She stared in shock at the car for a moment before running into the cabin.  
Mulder slammed the breaks on when he saw the woman. He felt a dizzying sensation as his blood pressure spiked and his adrenaline surged. Beside him, Scully’s mouth was an almost perfect ‘O’ of shock. If they had needed more proof they were in the right place, they had it now in the form of Samantha Mulder.

 

In the woods, William noticed the glaring flash. A surge of anger raced through him. Brilliant lights in the night… it must be Them! William turned and raced back towards the cabin, towards the source of the light. He would get to the bottom of everything, who was lying, who was telling the truth, who was on what side. They couldn’t hold his parents over him anymore, they were already dead now. And if They had anything to do with it, he would make them pay.

 

Samantha ran into the cabin, locked the front door behind her, ran upstairs into the bedroom and locked that door too. She heard shattering glass just before the bedroom door closed. Her breath was coming in hard sharp bursts. She’d seen the guts of the SUV, and she’d recognized the driver in the car that pulled in. Fox. Her brother. Somehow, she didn’t think he’d be much happier to see her than he would be to see Henri or the other hybrids. She was much too young to be the ‘real’ Samantha, and she knew all about his run-ins with clones before. Shaking, Samantha sat down hard on the edge of the bed she’d shared with Henri. They were trapped.

 

Mulder put the car in park and killed the lights without a word. He got out and started towards the house, lurching like Michael Myers. His face was white and cold, emotionless. Scully ran behind him, barely able to keep up at a fast walk.  
“Mulder, wait!” she said, grabbing his arm, but he shrugged her off and kept going. “Mulder, she might have William, don’t do anything stupid!”  
Mulder tried the door and found it locked. He looked around and found a heavy garden ornament mostly buried in the snow. He picked it up, tested its weight, than heaved it into the window next to the door, shattering the glass. He knocked the rest of the glass out with his elbow than reached through and unlocked the door. He drew his gun and kicked the door open. “William?” he called into the empty house. He heard the upstairs door snick shut, and immediately followed the noise, Scully behind him with her gun drawn as well.  
Samantha sat on the bed facing the door, waiting. Fox gave her two warnings before he began kicking the door. Samantha sat and waited, willing herself to keep still and not tremble, forcing her face to be impassive. When the door gave after the third kick and burst open Amy screamed in fear and Samantha held her tighter.  
“Who are you?” Mulder asked, his voice tight and shaking with fury. “And where is our son?” The light in the room was dim, but Mulder could see that the woman was a perfect copy of his sister, albeit a good decade younger than what Samantha should have been.   
Samantha looked him steadily in the eye. “I’m your sis-“. Mulder, Scully, and Samantha’s eyes all flashed to the window as a scream echoed up from outside.  
“Where are you? I know you’re here, I saw your lights you, you, bastards!” William shrieked, standing out front of the cabin, looking in all directions, furious. The lights had disappeared before he’d gotten back.   
Scully turned to Mulder. “It’s William.” she said breathlessly, turning and taking the steps two at a time. Mulder started to follow, then turned back to Samantha. He grabbed her upper arm, catching her off guard, and strong armed her into the closet. “I’ll be back for y-“ Mulder caught sight of the child’s face and again recognized his sister. His voice caught in his throat. “For both of you.” He shut the door and ran down the stairs after Scully, ignoring Samantha’s screams and poundings behind him to be let go.  
Scully stood outside in front of the door. Mulder stepped up behind her. About seven feet in front of them stood their son, William. William stared at them, than glowered. “You!” he snarled. “What are you doing here? How did you find me? Did she tell you?” he asked, tossing his head towards the house, indicating that he knew Samantha was in there. His abilities seemed to have increased tenfold with his anger.   
“Do you know who we are?” Scully asked him softly. The boy in front of her was much changed from the boy she’d met all those months ago at the park. He looked like he was a head taller, and his long hair had been cut short into a crew cut. His stance was strong and fierce now, and much less like a child. Scully was dismayed by the changes. This was everything she had wanted to protect her son from.   
“You’re not my parents. You threw me away. My parents are dead.” Billy said coldly. His anger and fury surrounded him like a freezing blue shield.  
Scully flinched away from his words, one of her deepest fears realized. “We did it to protect you.” Mulder said, hiding his own pain easier than Scully. “We thought, if we gave you away, they wouldn’t be able to find you.” Mulder took a tentative step towards his son. “I’m sorry, William. We’re sorry. We were wrong.”   
“That’s not true.” William growled through clenched teeth. “My Grandfather told me the truth, how you were just worried about your aliens, and how she just wanted to follow you around instead of dealing with me, and how you kept me away from my Grandfather.” But even as Billy spoke, the words began to sound hollow. If they had been so unconcerned with him, why were they here now? And why did everyone read so sincerely when someone had to be lying?  
“Your Grandfather?” Mulder asked, sounding confused, before Scully let out an earsplitting shriek.   
“That chain smoking MONSTER is NOT your Grandfather!” she screamed. Billy and Mulder both jumped and gave her twin looks of confusion. “I gave up everything for you, William, everything, and because of that bastard it wasn’t enough!” Tears rolled down her cheeks as she walked towards her son quickly, and in his shock Billy didn’t move. Scully dropped to one knee in front of him to look him directly in the eyes.   
“I gave up everything that mattered to me to keep you, because you mattered more than all of it put together, and when I couldn’t keep you safe, because that, man, that monster, was trying to take you, to bring you to one of these places and use you for what he wanted, to hurt you… Then I learned what it really meant to give up everything.” Scully stared into her son’s eyes. “I loved you William, I loved you than, I love you now, and I have loved you all this time in between, and that is the only reason I ever gave you to anyone else.”  
Billy stared back into her eyes, and felt the absolute truth of it wash over him. And he knew. He knew she told him the truth, he suddenly understood the old man’s distance from him, because now his abilities were too strong for the man to trick them. “Mom.” William whispered, and reached his arms out to embrace her. As he did there was a shriek and a thud from where Mulder stood near the house.  
Victor stepped out from where he had hidden, watching, and shrieked in fury. These people, this man and woman, were ruining everything, all of their plans. Victor smashed a heavy Christmas decoration across the back of Mulder’s skull. Mulder’s eyes rolled back and he crumpled, hitting the ground in a heap and not moving. Blood dripped from the decoration in Victor’s hands. He turned his murderous gaze on William and Scully and screamed “Traitor!”  
Dana pushed William away from her and yelled “William run!” She jumped to her feet and ran behind him as flood lights rigged in the trees throughout the nearby woods flashed to life. She could see other figures moving towards them. In the brilliant light, there would be nowhere to hide. With a last heartbroken look towards where Mulder lay she ran into the trees after her son.  
Billy ran through the softly crunching snow, his feet punching through the hard surface crust and sinking down several inches with each step. His breath came out in quick smoky bursts, his cheeks red and chapped from the icy air. The snow that covered everything muffled the world, and he couldn’t tell exactly where Dana was calling to him from. He paused to catch his breath, and his feet slid out from under him as the ground beneath them shifted.   
“Mom!” The little cry was piercing in this silent and blanketed world. William slid down the steep slope sideways, smashing through the frozen upper layer as he went, expecting all the while that it would stop breaking and impale him. Than the earth opened before him, a gaping maw ready to swallow him whole.   
“Mommy!” This time it was a real scream, amplified by his terror. At the last second he caught hold of the ledge before sliding into the deep chasm. His body slammed into the rocky canyon wall, and instead of another scream he could only manage a breathless whimper.  
Dana heard the cries and tried to run towards them. She could feel the beginnings of frostbite on her nose, her ears, and the tips of her fingers. She was unprepared, not dressed for the freezing snowy weather of the French Alps.   
“William?” Her eyes scanned the white landscape for the slightest sign of the little boy. “William!” The snow distorted every sound, and she couldn’t tell where the cries had come from.   
Then she saw him. There was a thin scar that ran across part of the slope, a break in the solid landscape. She could see a form struggling to pull itself back up over the edge, a form the size of a small child. William. She immediately began to run down the slope towards him, and promptly slipped and fell face first in the snow. She slid a good five feet or more before coming to a stop.   
“I’m coming, William!” Her face burned and she was surprised by how frightened her voice sounded, how high the pitch was. “Mommy’s coming.” She whispered, to herself rather than him.   
She fell three more times before she made it to the ledge and inched as near to him as she dared. He was holding tightly to a slight jut of ice, but his small gloved hands were losing their grip. Dana stretched her arm out, reaching for him, laying flat on her stomach. She was afraid to go too close; afraid she would dislodge the ice and snow and send him toppling.  
“You have to reach William; I need you to give me your hand.” Despite the below zero temperatures, she was sweating. Trickles of water froze in her scalp. She watched him start to reach and pull back. “Come on William, you can do it.” Her voice was soft; she edged forward carefully, reaching for him.  
Terror showed plainly in his eyes, but the rest of his face was expressionless. His tongue darted out and quickly flicked over his chapped lips as he gathered his strength and nerve to do as she asked. Then he pushed himself forward, holding on for dear life with one hand, and lashed out quickly with the other, grabbing for her desperately. She snatched at him, but he was still too far away for her to connect with his waving hand. His eyes widened and his mouth dropped. He was really slipping this time. His head slipped just out of her view, and she managed to lunge forward and catch hold of one of his hands just before it disappeared. Her heart hammered in her chest.  
“I got you, Billy. I have you.” Frightened tears rolled down both of their faces. Scully’s breath came in hard pants. She was close enough to see over the sheer drop now. It had to be more than fifty feet to the bottom  
Holding his hand tightly, she reached for the back of his jacket to pull him up. As she did his glove slipped off in her hand. A startled cry tried to escape her as he slid down and her wide eyes met his, but no sound would come out.  
“Mommy.” It wasn’t a scream, nor was it a cry. It was a pitiful word, only spoken, nothing more. It was barely more than a whisper, and then he was gone. Dana almost tumbled after him, trying to grab something, anything. Anything to keep him there with her.  
His arms were straight out to his sides, flailing, looking almost as though he were trying to learn to fly. For a second Dana’s sanity slipped and she thought she saw him rising back up to her, really flying. The air gusted up the legs of his jeans and up his parka, making them puff out. He kicked his legs frantically in a bicycling motion, trying anything to stop his fall. Seven feet down the heel of his left boot hit the wall. The force pulled the shoe off and tossed it over his head. He tumbled head over heels two times, spinning wildly. He didn’t make it a third time around. Instead, the back of his head hit the rock wall. He was still close enough that Dana could see the blood spatter lightly over the back of her son’s coat. This flipped him so he faced downward, as though he were doing some kind of absurd belly-flop.  
Her breath hitched violently, breathless gasps, as she stared over the edge, watching him fall, and fall some more. Her exhales were broken sobs, until she saw his head hit the wall. She watched the blood roll over his coat in thin streams and thought she saw a spray of blood around him, a fine mist of red droplets.   
Then she was able to scream. But it wasn’t really a scream. It was a sound that was ripped from the depths of her being, from the deepest part of her essence. It formed his name, but it couldn’t really be called a word. It was more than that. In that moment, it was her life, her entire reason for being. It was the momentary destruction of her sanity, to have come so far and to lose so much now.   
“William!” It stretched on, rolling and thundering even amongst the muffling snow. Her voice was shrill and hysterical, so much so that it was distorted nearly beyond coherency. It lasted until she finally looked away. She didn’t look away until she saw him hit the bottom and send a puff of snow billowing up into the air. She kept her eyes with him until that last moment. Only then did the sound of his name die away from her lips, only then did she stop staring over the edge.   
Dana dragged herself away from the edge and collapsed only a few feet away. Her entire body ached with the emotional pain and shock. She rolled onto her back and stared up into the solid black of the snowy night sky. The tears ran freely now and she ignored them even as they froze to her ears and cheeks. She could no longer feel her nose or ears, and her fingers and toes were quickly following suit. She didn’t care. She was alone now. Mulder and William were both gone.   
The snow continued to pick up, and she closed her eyes.


	14. Chapter 14

Dana didn’t know how long she laid in the snow, eyes shut. It could have been seconds, it could have been hours. For all she knew, it could be days. The only thing that was registering to her was that William and Mulder were gone. A crunching sound from somewhere around her eventually registered, and she laid still, hoping it would be quick.  
“Scully?”  
Her eyes sprang open as she recognized the voice. “Mulder?” she cried, her breath catching in her throat in surprise. She sat straight up and tried to hug him, pulling him down in the process. She kissed him long and deeply while Mulder’s eyes went wide at the strong reaction. They broke apart and she looked into his face intensely. “Mulder, I thought you were…” and she burst into fresh tears again and buried her head in his shoulder.   
Mulder petted her hair gently and held her close. “Dana, it’s alright. I’m alright, I’m here, I’m not going anywhere.” Scully continued to sob, and Mulder felt a brush of unease. It was unlike her. He looked around over her head. “Where’s William?” he asked, and her tears intensified. Mulder felt like someone had plunged an icicle into his chest. “Scully, where is he?” he asked again, trying to look at her face.  
Scully kept her head down. She couldn’t look at him, face him. Tell him she had killed their son. “I’m so sorry…” she whispered, seeming to physically sink into herself. “I’m so sorry… I, I… lost, him.” Fresh sobbing tears flowed freely again. And to her shock she felt Mulder’s arms go around her and squeeze her tight. After a moment he whispered in her ear. “We need to get moving. They’re going to find us.” He tugged her to her feet. “We, we can’t leave him here. Where, is he?” And Scully saw the pain he was hiding away. She pointed towards the gorge.  
Mulder walked as close to the edge as he dared and looked down. He could see the rough outline of his son, the blue coat catching in the fading spotlights that didn’t quite reach this far. Not much farther on the drop lessened to only ten or so feet, ironically. Farther than that, maybe 30 yards farther down, the bottom sloped up to meet the rest of the hill. He couldn’t stop the welling in his eyes than. He walked back over and hugged Scully again, than kissed her lips gently. “Wait here; I have to go down and get him.” Scully watched as he picked his way down the slope towards their son.   
As Mulder got closer he could detect drops of blood spattered around. This brought the tears flowing down his cheeks. A few feet ahead he could see the snow was sunk down in a shape like a half formed snow angel. For a moment he couldn’t go on. He sat on a rock jutting up through the snow and put his head in his hands. His head ached fiercely from getting smashed by Victor, but the pain in his chest was worse. One of his hands snaked to his pocket and he gripped the object in it tightly. It was a gold locket on a golden chain. Inside was a picture of Scully holding William when he was a baby. Scully had an identical locket, but in one half of hers was Mulder holding William as a baby, and in the other half was a picture of Emily Sims shortly before the child had gotten sick. He began to sob softly, each sob racking his body and sending agony through his skull. “My son, my son.” He whimpered softly, and began rocking slightly. Unfortunately he didn’t have the luxury to sit there long. Henri and the other children had to be closing in.   
Mulder walked to the body-shaped indent in the ground and stared with a slack jaw. There was still blood splattered in spots and streamers all about, but the boy was gone. Mulder blinked in disbelief. He’d been there when he walked down the slope…   
“Daddy?” A small voice called from the shadows and Mulder jumped. He looked up, and there was William. His son. He stood just downhill from him, holding one of his sneakers in his hand. He took a step toward Mulder and stumbled and Mulder ran to catch him. He picked the boy up in his arms, big as William was, and hugged him tight, cradling his head in one of his hands, William’s arms wrapped around his neck.  
“William… how?” he asked, pulling away to get a good luck at his son. And for the first time in 6 years or more he saw his son genuinely smile and heard his laugh.   
“It hurt, and I couldn’t move for a bit, but that’s all. It takes an awful, awful lot to really hurt Us.” William told his Father. “What about you, Daddy? I thought Victor really got you.”  
Mulder chuckled and reluctantly set his son down on the rock he himself had been sitting on just moments before. He slipped the sneaker back on William’s foot gently and began to tie it. “Kind of the same deal. It hurt a lot, and knocked me out for a bit, but it takes a lot more than that to keep me down when I have to look after you and your Mom.” Mulder winked at his son and picked him back up. “Let’s go back up to your Mother; she’s going to be very happy when she sees you’re alright.”  
William gave his father a strange look. “Daddy, you’re still hurt.” He said matter-of-factly, and then reached up and touched Mulder’s forehead. Relief flooded through him instantly. Not just his head, but his entire body. Every ache and pain vanished. Mulder stared at him in astonishment.   
“Will, how’d you do that?” he asked, and the little boy smiled at him shyly and shrugged.   
“I don’t know Daddy. We can do lots of things.”

Scully waited at the top of the gorge, turned away and huddled down, shivering. Her life with William as a baby was playing through her mind over and over. Bringing him home, changing his diapers, feeding him. Seeing his smile, hearing his laugh, watching him grow, learn to sit up, to crawl. Then she envisioned him as he was that day at the park, playing and happy. She didn’t turn towards the snow crunching towards her, couldn’t. She couldn’t see him like that.  
“Scully? How are you doing?” Mulder asked as they approached.  
“I can’t look at him Mulder.” She said softly, still looking away.   
Mulder and William exchanged a look. “I think you want to turn around Scully.” Mulder said softly, a hand on William’s shoulder.  
“Mulder, I can’t.” she said, even as she turned to him. Her eyes widened when they fell on her son. “William?” she whispered, not understanding. Her eyes flicked upwards to her fiancé. “William… Mulder, how?” she whispered. This time the tears did not begin to flow. For now, she was cried out.  
William walked over to her and hugged her. She hugged him, than hugged him tighter.   
“It’s okay Mommy, I’m okay.” William said breathlessly as she squeezed him tightly. She let go and pulled him back from her slightly to look into his face. His face was perfect. There were no blemishes, no cuts or scratches, scrapes or bruises. He smiled at her, and in spite of it all she smiled back at him and hugged him again.  
William pulled away from her suddenly, frowning. “They’re here.” He said, his voice solidly serious. “They know where I am, just like I know where they are. They’re tracking us.” William looked up hill from them, towards the house. “Victor & Ellis are coming from the West. Henri’s coming head on from the North. Derek and Joy started together from the East, but they split up. Joy cut down farther to the south.” William’s frowned deepened and he turned to look behind him. “They’re flanking us. They’re trying to drive us down to the Southern Bluffs, down that way! We’ll be backed up against the cliff walls there, trapped.” William looked back up the hill again. “We have to go around them, if we can get around them and get back to the house we’ll have a chance. There are, safeguards. If we can get in, we should be able to activate the security system. Aunt Samantha should know how to work it. ”  
At the mention of his sister’s name, especially with the word ‘aunt’ before it, Mulder jerked involuntarily. “She’s not your Aunt, William.” Mulder told him. “It’s just another lie. She’s just a copy of your aunt, my sister. She’s not the real thing.”  
William had started towards the hill but stopped at his Father’s words and looked back at him. “Yes, Daddy, she is my aunt. She’s not the Original, but she’s not just a copy like the others. She’s different than all the other ones. Something went wrong when she was created. Well, wrong as far as They would be concerned. She hid it from them. It’s why there’s something wrong with Amy too, it’s why they want to destroy her.”   
Mulder didn’t move, trying to understand what William was saying his mind refusing to believe it, to believe any of it.  
“She’s not the original Samantha, Daddy, but she’s the real Samantha now.”

 

Samantha kicked the door again, and finally heard it begin to splinter. Amy’s whimpers, which had begun to taper off, started back up again at the splintering sound. Another kick, and another. Almost there. Samantha backed up as far as she could, then ran at the door, left shoulder first, throwing all of her weight into it. The closet door flew open and spilled Samantha out onto the floor.   
“Ugh!” she moaned, the breath knocked out of her from the awkward landing. Pain shot through the shoulder she had slammed into the door than landed on. Biting her lip and breathing raggedly, she used the bed to pull herself up on her knees, than to her feet. The pain that washed through her was dizzying, and she sat down on the edge of the bed heavily.   
“Mommy?” Amy asked, following her tentatively out of the closet, eyes wide. Her thumb found its way into her mouth.   
Samantha looked at her daughter and almost lost her battle with herself. The tears almost started to flow. The aching deep in her left shoulder and elbow didn’t help, nor did the pain washing through her left hip; she almost certainly needed to get to a hospital. Any chance they had to get out of here was gone now, and she didn’t know how else she could save her daughter’s life.   
Samantha forced a smile to her face and held her good arm out to her daughter. “Come here Sunshine.” She couldn’t let Amy see how frightened she was. Amy smiled tentatively and went to her mother, wrapping her small arms around her waist. Samantha enfolded her in a one armed hug. They sat silently in the dark room, Samantha watching the door, praying to a God she wasn’t sure she really believed in, and whom she was almost positive would never intervene on the behalf of beings such as herself and her daughter. 

 

Joy made her way through the snow, cutting farther and farther to the South. Though she wore only a denim jumper, leggings, Mary Janes and a purple parka, she didn’t feel the biting cold. She was concentrating too hard on following where William was. Of all the hybrids she was the closest to him, and he was doing his best to throw them off. He was strong, he could almost do it. He could certainly through Derek and Ellis off, maybe even Victor. But not Henri. He was far too strong for that, and far too angry.   
Joy picked up her pace. She didn’t cut through the snow like a shark, operating solely on a predatory instinct. Instead, she looked like a very intense but perfectly normal little girl. She and William had been friends from the beginning. It had been allowed, because this sort of situation had not been entirely unexpected. Samantha had believed she had fooled everyone, but instead They had fooled her. They had kept her as a useful diversion to gain William’s trust when the time came, and in the meantime she had been a useful breeder. Her daughter was imperfect, a failure, but her son Victor was one of the best examples of the successful hybrid program.   
Joy cut to the south again. She was getting closer, she could feel him. William trusted her, she knew that. What was meant to happen was for her to take advantage of that. She was to lead him into their trap under the guise of defecting with him and helping him get away. As punishment for defying Them, he would watch his parents die, than Samantha and Amy as well. It would be a swift and brutal lesson on what would happen if Their authority was challenged. Joy knew it would push William farther into rebellion, but she also knew They would bring him to heel eventually. They had their ways, and They would never just let William escape.   
Figures moving just downhill of her, only a few yards away, caught Joy’s attention. It was William and his parents. She felt a sharp pierce of sorrow as she remembered her own parents but brushed it away quickly. She raised her hand out and called out William’s name, beginning to run towards them.


End file.
